It happened one night
by anxious cucumber
Summary: Riley just broke up with her boyfriend and what happens when she meets a handsome stranger at a bar? Maya is in love with Josh but she doesn't know how to tell him. Rucas, Joshaya
1. The first meeting

**A/N: Hey guys. I decided to write another story. I completed one and I am now doing two simultaneously. Everything you need to know is in the first chapter, but basically Maya and Riley are 18, Lucas is freshman in NYU who just moved from Texas and those are the only major changes. I hope you like it and if you do follow, comment, I would love to hear your thoughts, so let's get started.**

„Love sucks. " Young Riley Matthews thought as she laid in her bad with a broken heart. She wasn't used to feeling like this. She loved love. She loved romance. She wanted to spend every day of her life holding his hand and playing with his hair. But he broke her heart.

She remembered the first time they said they loved each other.

 _They were in an ice skating ring that winter. Charlie held her hand and made sure she didn't fell._

" _I'm scared." – Riley said with a laugh._

 _"_ _I got you. I won't let anything bad happen to you." Charlie told her as he laughed too._

 _They went around the rink in circles. She always loved skating at Rockefeller Center around Christmas. She just wished she was better at it. But Charlie never let go of her hand. He held her tightly and his warm smile made her feel like there is nothing she couldn't do. She felt confident and so she sped up, still holding onto his hand. Charlie followed her lead. Riley was having so much fun. Maybe the most fun she had in a while. She already pictured them twirling on the ice together. She saw herself doing pirouettes and jumps all around the ice when she suddenly lost her balance and fell down with Charlie's hand still in hers. He fell on top of her. Riley felt embarrassed. Her cheeks already started to blush with color of shame. But Charlie just laughed it off._

 _"_ _I love you." – He said. As soon as he realized what he said he stopped laughing._

 _"_ _I can't believe I just said that. We've only been together for a couple of months. I know it's too soon. I…"_

 _"_ _I love you too." Riley interrupted his rambling._

 _"_ _You do?" Charlie asked bewildered._

 _Riley chuckled. "Of course. You are perfect."_

 _Charlie got closer to her and pressed his lips onto hers._

Tears streamed down Riley's face as she remembered the way he tasted. That jerk.

A soft knock on her window brought her back from the memory lane. Riley didn't turn around because she already knew who it was. She heard her window being slid open and her best friend entered her room the same way she always did. Maya laid under the covers next to her best friend and asked how she was doing.

Riley shrugged her shoulders in response.

"Come on Riles. You've been at it for three days. He's just a boy. And he is not worth all of this." Maya tried to get her friend out of the bed.

"It hurts Maya. It hurts so bad." Riley cried out to her best friend since birth. "What if he's the only guy I'll ever like? I'll never find love like this again."

"Good." Maya let slip out. She never liked Charlie. And she never hid that from Riley.

"You don't understand. You've never been in love."

"I don't need to be in love to know that guy wasn't right for you. And you are only eighteen. You'll fall in love again. And again and again. Your parents aren't the rule. They're the exception. They are just a painful reminder for the rest of us unlucky bastards." Maya told her friend.

Riley groaned in disagreement.

"I am going to the kitchen to get something to eat and when I come back, you are getting out of this bed." Maya jumped out of the bed, desperately needing a break from the pity party Riley threw herself.

In the Matthew's kitchen, Cory and Topanga were sitting at the table. Cory was grading some papers and Topanga was working on her case. They got used to Maya sneaking in through Riley's window so it didn't even faze them when she just walked in to the kitchen from their daughter's room.

"We do have a door, you know." – Cory said to her, not even lifting his head from the papers. More out of habit than anything else, knowing very well that nothing would change.

"Where's the fun in that?" – Maya teased. She opened the refrigerator door and grabbed the cheesecake out of it.

"How is she doing?" – Topanga asked in a voice of a worried mother.

"Same as yesterday." – It pained Maya to say. – "But I am getting her out of that bed, whether it's the last thing I do." She vowed.

"I just wish she'd talk to us." – Cory said. – "We don't even know why they broke up."

"She told you, right?" Topanga asked her. "Please tell us Maya."

Maya loved Cory and Topanga like they were her own parents. They practically raised her. They babysat her every day after school up until she was old enough to stay home alone, because her mother worked so much. And even after that, she would always come over after school. Even now as they were almost out of high school.

"I can't." Maya said in an apologetic voice. "She'll tell you when she's ready. Just be patient."

"She is our daughter." Topanga stated.

"We can't let her stay in that bed forever." Cory stepped in.

"We have to intervene." Topanga finished.

It was weird to Maya how two people can act as one, like these two did. Especially since that is nothing like the example she had at home.

"Just give me until the morning." Maya pleaded. "And then you can take over."

Cory and Topanga shared a silent look. Topanga nodded at Cory and then he looked at Maya and said: "You have until morning."

Maya was about to thank them and head back to Riley's room when the front door opened loudly and Josh Matthews walked into the apartment.

"Hey family." His voice echoed the room. Maya's knees buckled at the sound of his voice.

"Hey, Maya." He smiled at her and it send a shiver down her whole body.

She thought she was over that stupid crush. She hadn't seen him in a while and he still looked incredible. Maya imagined him walking over to her and kissing her against a wall. She quickly snapped out of it.

"Hey." She smiled at him.

She liked him for the past two years. No one knew about it. Not even Riley. She knew she didn't have any shot with him so she completely blocked that idea from her brain. But sometimes when she laid in her bed at night, and she didn't have to hide it from the world, she wondered how he tasted and if his hair smelled different up close and she thought about how her body would fit with his and she couldn't help but smile.

"I haven't seen you in a while." Josh said friendly. "How you've been?"

"Fine." Maya answered. "I'm always fine. See you Josh." She rushed back in to Riley's room, leaving a confused Josh.

"Did I do something? She seems like she is avoiding me."

"Teenagers. You can never read them." Cory said, even though he had a pretty good idea as to why Maya was acting the way she was.

XXXXXX

Maya wanted to get her friend out of her bad mood, that much was true. But she was also sick of having feelings for Josh, so now it was also personal. She needed a break as much as Riley did.

She put the cheesecake on the table and ripped the covers off of Riley. Riley picked up her head slightly so she can look her friend in the eye but still remained in the fetal position.

"Listen to me carefully. I know how you feel. You feel broken now. It hurts and you feel broken. And it's fine. You get to feel broken. But you need to know you are not. He is not what kept you whole. You are. And he did not break you. You are the only one that can break you." Maya said all in one breathe. "So get up and get dressed. We are going out and we are drinking and making out with boys. Because we are not victims. They did not break us."

Riley felt fired up from the speech. She stood on top of her bed and yelled: "I am not broken!" at the top of her lungs.

Maya joined her on top of the bed. "We are not broken!" They chanted together. And jumped on the bed holding each other's hand.

"You said us." Riley stopped jumping.

"What?" Maya didn't understand.

"You said they did not break us. Who broke you?" Riley wondered.

"No one." Maya quickly responded. "It's just a figure of speech. I said it so you know you're not alone."

Riley bought it.

"Let's get dressed." Maya changed the subject.

XXXXXX

They walked out in to the living room. Cory was playing cards with Auggy and Josh and Topanga were in the kitchen making dinner. Maya and Riley walked out hand in hand, both with full make up on and hear done. Maya was in a black strapless knee-length dress that was wider from the waist down and red stilettoes. Her hair was tied in a braid that started on the side of her head and circled all the way to the other side. Riley wore a low cut navy blue shirt and black skinny jeans that went perfectly with her knee length high heel boots. Her wavy hair was pinned half up. Everyone turned to look at them. Josh dropped a plate and it smashed into a hundred pieces. Cory couldn't believe that Riley was out of her bed.

"We are going out." Maya declared.

"Because we are not broken." Riley added.

"Not dressed like that you aren't." Cory said.

Topanga gave him a serious look. "Our daughter is going out Cory. For the first time in three days. Don't blow it."

"Fine." Cory gave in. "But I don't like it."

XXXXXX

It was Saturday night so girls had a lot of options to where they wanted to go out. Maya heard of a great pub from a friend and she waited for a chance to try it out. So she took Riley there. As soon as the cab dropped them off and they were about to walk in Riley had second thought.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. Maybe we should just go back to my house and watch a movie or something." She offered as a plan b. But Maya wasn't budging.

"Not a chance. We are staying." She looked at her friend. Riley looked like she was about to be sick.

"How about we stay for one drink. And if you still want to go home after that we will." Maya offered. Riley smiled.

"But you have to try to have fun." Maya ordered. Riley nodded in agreement. They entered the pub and sat at the bar. The bend was playing a fast song and a lot of people were dancing.

Girls ordered two cocktails. Maya turned around to check out if there were any cute guys around them. She noticed two guys who talked to each other intensely, like they haven't seen each other in a long time. Maya thought they were cute and the tall one looked like Riley's type.

Maya turned to face Riley with a devilish smile on her face. Riley immediately knew what Maya was thinking.

"No. I am not walking up to any guys." She was determined.

"We don't live in the fifties Riles. There are no rules anymore. You can't wait for a guy to come to you. You have to go to them. Give them a little push." Maya explained.

"I am all about the empowerment, but there is no way I can walk up to a guy and flirt."

"Fine. I'll make it happen. You just don't blow it." Maya said and without any further explanation she got up and walked to the two handsome guys she previously spotted. She leaned on their table and smiled at the shorter one.

"You look like you want me to buy you a drink." She said without even flinching.

"You know me so well." The hansom stranger answered.

"Don't you dare leave me alone, Zay." His friend said.

"Zay? I'm Maya." She introduced herself.

"And I am blessed." He said back.

She turned to his friend. "My friend Riley over at the bar could use some company."

"I…" The handsome guy started to say but Zay interrupted him: "She could use some company, man."

Zay and Maya walked to the bar laughing.

XXXXXX

Riley regretted coming out. She got lost in the moment of Maya's speech and she thought that just maybe this would be good for her. But instead it just made her think about Charlie more. She watched her best friend as she fearlessly walked over to the guy that caught her eye. Riley wished that she had just a little amount of Maya in her. She wished she could walk through life knowing that she is stronger than the worst thing that can happen to her. But instead she couldn't even handle a high school break up. How pathetic was that? She took another sip of her mystery cocktail and looked at the bartender. She considered ordering another one.

"Riley is it?" A voice behind her scared her. She turned around to meet the eye of one of the best looking guys she ever saw outside of her TV. For a second she completely forgot her name but she nodded anyways because she didn't see how anyone could say no to that face. He sat down beside her.

"Hi. I am Lucas." He offered her his hand.

Riley shook it. "I am Riley. But you already knew that." She added quickly. Lucas smiled.

"Your friend is with my friend." He pointed to Maya and Zay who sat at the other end of the bar.

"I noticed." Riley said awkwardly. Her eyes landed on her knees.

"I hope I am not bothering you. I don't want you to think I am hitting on you." Lucas tried to make her feel more comfortable. But he also didn't want to offend her. "Not that I wouldn't hit on you. You are gorgeous. Very beautiful. And I did not notice it in a creepy way. I just mean in a rational way. I mean I have eyes. And I can notice a beautiful woman. Or a man. Not that I am into men. But there is nothing wrong if other men are. And I am sure you are more than just a pretty face but I don't know you so I…"

Riley laughed at his babbling. It was the first thing that really made her smile since her break up. She put her hand on his shoulder to stop him. "It's okay. I understand."

"Sorry. I am usually better that this. I am just new to the city. And I don't know anyone here but Zay. I never talk this much." He smiled apologetically.

"I don't mind. I kind of like it. Usually I am the one rambling all the time." They both laughed.

"How about we order another drink and you tell me where you're from." Riley offered, surprising herself with how calm she was.

"I am buying." Lucas agreed.

XXXXXX

"I've never been to Texas. " Riley said as they both put down their second empty shot glass.

"It's so beautiful. I loved growing up there. I used to have all these horses and I'd ride them with my friends and I used to be in all these rodeos and it feels so weird to be so far away from all of that."

"I don't think I could do it." Riley said. "I am so used to my life here, I could never just drop everything and leave."

"Well you'll go to college next year too, so you'll probably have to."

"Not if I go to NYU." Riley found a necessary loophole.

"So we might be going to the same college next year." Lucas concluded cheerfully.

"And you'll be a sophomore by then and you can show me around the campus." Riley said equally ecstatic.

"I'll drink to that." He ordered another round.

XXXXXX

"How can you even say that to me?" Lucas said as they both put down their forth empty shot glass.

"How can you claim that the Godfather is a better movie than Pulp fiction?" Riley said annoyed.

"Not the Godfather, the Godfather part 2. But yes the Godfather as well." Lucas wasn't backing down.

"Pulp fiction is Tarantino at his best. The dialog in that movie is some of the best ever written and the way he goes from one storyline to another, only to tie them at the end…brilliant." Riley argued.

"The Godfather is an institution. The story is captivating and the acting is impeccable. And the sequel is the only Hollywood sequel success story. That just gives it extra points."

"And the third one?" She questioned.

"We don't talk about that one."

XXXXXX

"My last girlfriend broke up with me because I moved to New York. Can you imagine? Just because she was happy with a small town life means I have to be too?" Lucas said as they both put down their sixth empty shot glass.

"I just broke up with my boyfriend." Riley shared her love wounds too.

"What did he do?" Lucas asked.

"What makes you think it wasn't me?" Riley asked.

"You are the one getting drunk with me here and not him."

"I am not getting drunk. You are just getting blurry." Riley responded. Lucas laughed a little too loud.

"So what did he do?" Lucas asked again.

"He wanted me to sleep with him and when I refused he threatened to break up with me so I broke up with him first." Riley opened up to him. She didn't even tell that to her parents.

"Riley Matthews." Lucas said impressed. "You are a badass."

Riley chuckled. "Please."

"No I mean it. He was a jerk for pressuring you when you weren't ready. And you showed him he can't treat you like his doll. You are a badass." Lucas said again.

"I am a badass." Riley agreed. "Cheers to that."

XXXXXX

"I love alcohol." Riley said as they both put down their eight empty shot glass.

Lucas laughed. "Okay. I think we had enough. "

"Not yet. Come on. Tell me something else about you." Riley pleaded.

"What do you want to know?" Lucas played along.

Riley stopped to think for a while. Then her face beamed with realization. "I want to know about your first time."

Lucas smiled but he didn't feel uncomfortable. "You are dirty when you are drunk." He teased.

"Just answer the question." Riley was drunk enough to not feel ashamed.

Lucas stopped for a second but then he decided to answer honestly. "I was 17. I was dating this girl and we were together for like a year and then she broke up with me and I was really upset about it so I went to this party one of my friend was throwing and I got really drunk. And there was this girl and we were both sad and we were both drunk and we hooked up. It wasn't romantic, it wasn't incredible. I found out her name the next morning and I wasn't really proud of myself."

"Kind of like what I am doing right now." Riley said.

"Not like what you are doing. I would never let that happen." They were both honest with each other the whole night. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the strange connection they felt with each other or maybe it was a little bit of both. They didn't care. They both just enjoyed it.

"What are you thinking about right now?" Lucas asked her and mimicked her position as she held her head in a palm of the arm that she rested on the bar.

"I am debating whether I should kiss you or not?" Riley said without any hesitation.

"What are the pros and cons?" He asked amused.

"Well, if I do I am probably never going to see you again because we are both very drunk and it's debatable whether one or both of us would even remember it and I did just break up with someone and you might just be a rebound but if I don't I will probable regret it for the rest of my life."

"Did anyone ever tell you think too much?"

XXXXXX

Maya and Zay sat at the bar making jokes and glancing over at their friends. They ordered another drink and flirted. Maya considered hooking up with him. She found him attractive and he clearly thought the same about her but something stopped her. She wanted more than a simple hook up. She wanted a spark, fireworks. And even though she liked Zay, she didn't feel that with him. Mostly because he wasn't Josh.

"How about another drink?" Zay offered.

"I'd love to, but at the rate Riley is going down there" Maya pointed her head in the direction of her friend, "it seems like I need to stay sober."

"You don't trust me to not take advantage of you?" Zay asked in a mock hurt voice. "I am horrified that you don't trust a complete stranger you just met to take you home safe."

Maya playfully kicked his arm.

"So who's your poison?" Zay asked her. He noticed Maya wasn't interesting in him in a romantic way.

"What do you mean?" Maya didn't understand.

"Everyone has that one person that screwed them over for good. You know that guy that is always running around your thoughts." Zay explained.

Maya smiled. "Who's your poison?" She asked.

"Vanessa." He answered and his eyes shifted from playful to sad.

"Wanna talk about it?" Maya offered.

"Do you wanna talk about yours?" Zay asked.

"No." Maya wasn't ready.

"Maybe in some other pub, on some other night." Zay suggested. Maya laughed and agreed. "I would love that."

She looked over to Riley and Lucas. Riley just stood up from her seat and put her both hands out to Lucas. He took them and followed her. It seems like they were heading to the girls bathroom.

Maya wondered if she should stop her friend or let her have fun.

XXXXXX

As soon as the door behind them closed, Lucas took two steps towards Riley, she tucked on his shirt and their lips met. It was unlike anything Riley ever experienced before. His touch send electric shots down her whole body. He grabbed her waist and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He sat her down next to the sink and kissed her neck. Riley's back arched with pleasure. Her hands were in his hair. His right hand roamed her thigh and a soft moan escaped her throat. His lips found hers again and Riley pulled him closer. In the haze of alcohol and broken hearts, he was the only thing she saw clearly. She inhaled his smell and memorized every nuke of his body. She wanted him to kiss her forever. But instead he let her go and took a step back.

"We should stop." He said.

"Yes. Definitely." Riley agreed. "We are both drunk."

"And I don't know if I can stop myself." He said honestly.

"And that would be bad." She said, but it sounded more like a question.

He looked at her and she was so beautiful.

"We should go back." She interrupted his thoughts.

"Definitely." He agreed. But neither one of them moved.

Riley jumped off of the sink and kissed him again. She pushed him back until his back was against the wall. He turned them around so that her back was against the wall. He pulled back again and placed his forehead on hers. Her fingers were on his cheeks. They were both breathing heavily.

"We really should go back." Lucas said.

"Definitely." Riley agreed. He smiled slightly and softly kissed her forehead.

XXXXXX

They walked out of the bathroom and straight to Maya and Zay.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Zay teased them.

"Hi, I'm Riley." She introduced herself to Zay.

"Zay. Pleasure." He said as he shook her hand.

"We should go." Riley said to Maya. "It's time."

Maya didn't question it or tried to make her stay. She got up and said her goodbyes to the boys.

"Are you sure you don't want us to take you home?" Lucas asked Riley for the fifth time.

"I am a badass, remember?" Riley reminded him. "I can take care of myself."

Lucas smiled. "I'll call you." He told her.

"You do have my number." She confirmed.

They looked at each other's eyes for a while. Riley didn't know if she really liked this guy or if she was just drunk and he was there. All she knows is she didn't think about Charlie once the whole night, except when they talked about their exes and even then it didn't hurt as much.

Maya interrupted their stare: "We should go."

Lucas's eyes didn't leave Riley until her silhouette left the pub completely. When they stepped into the chilly September night, Riley bent over and threw up on the pavement.

Maya rushed to her and held her hair.

"Good girl. I am proud at how long you lasted." She said as she rubbed her back with one hand and held her hair with the other.

Riley stood up straight. "Maya, I don't have any money left."

"You drank it all?" Maya said a little sharper than she wanted.

"I am sorry. It's a force of habit. He used to do it a lot." Maya apologized. Riley knew it was more about her dad than her.

"I don't have enough money for a cab." Maya said.

"We are not taking the subway this late." Riley put her foot down.

"What are we going to do then?" Maya asked her friend.

"There is only one person I am willing to let see me like this." Riley explained.

Maya knew who she meant.

"Crap." She thought.

XXXXXX

It took Josh twenty minutes to come and pick them up. Maya wished she picked a closer pub as she stood in the cold. Riley threw up one more time until he arrived.

Josh parked in front of them with a devilish smile that his lips curled into.

"Don't say it." Maya warned him. Riley laid down in the back seat and Maya sat up front.

"I didn't say anything." He replied as Maya put her seatbelt on.

"But you were thinking it."

Josh put his hands up in the air in defense and then started the car.

"Is she okay?" He asked about Riley who already fell asleep in the back.

"She had a little too much to drink but she also had fun so I think she'll be just fine." Maya said and slipped into silence she hoped would last for the rest of the ride but Josh wouldn't let it.

"Did I do something?" He asked straight forward. He caught Maya off guard.

"You've been very cold towards me lately. We used to joke around and I thought we were friends and then you just shut me out."

"That's not true." Maya protested.

"Come on Maya. I am not blind." He said.

–That's debatable. – She thought.

"I am not avoiding you if that's what you are implying and we were never friends, we just knew each other for a long time. It's not the same. " She said to him.

"We used to talk a lot. You told me stuff. I told you stuff. That's what friends do." Josh told her.

He was right and that was part of the problem. When they were younger they talked all the time but when Maya started to like him, it became so much harder to be just friends. Especially when they talked about each other's crushes. It killed Maya to hear him talk about some other girl in that way, so when she finally stepped back he made it easier for her with his busy schedule.

"You had a lot of preparations for the med school and I've been busy with school. Life got in the way. It happens." Maya justified herself.

"That is such a bed excuse."

"It is not an excuse."

"It so is. Life got in the way. That's bull." They reached the Matthew's home and the conversation ended.

They woke up Riley and helped her to her room. Maya was sleeping over. She wanted to crawl in the bed next to Riley and sleep for days but Josh gently put his hand on her wrist and pointed his head in the direction of the hall. Maya followed him out of the room.

"What?" Sleepy Maya asked.

"I know we grew apart and I know it's my fault as much as it is yours but I really miss my friend and I want her back. Let's just stay up all night and talk."

Maya felt cornered. What could she do? Admit her feelings to him right there or just say no? How could she explain that without having to explain why she didn't want to talk to him? She trembled at the sheer sight of him. How could she spent the whole night talking to him?

"Fine." She finally said. "Let's talk."


	2. The first date

Maya and Josh were sitting in the bay window in the living room for the past two hours. Just talking. Maya had to admit, she really missed Josh. Besides Riley and Farkle he was the only one she could really talk to. Without the judgment and pressure. And Maya needed that in her life.

"When was the last time we did this?" Josh asked referring to their late night talk.

Maya thought about it for a second. "I think the last time was when my dad left."

"That was a rough night." Josh treaded carefully.

"To say the least." Maya confirmed.

"Did you hear from him since?" Josh asked concerned.

"Thankfully, no. it's been a year. As far as I know he could be dead. " Maya said. She didn't like talking about her father. Josh picked up on that and changed the subject.

"I think the pressure is getting to me. The pre-med program is tougher than I thought it would be." Josh opened up to her.

"I think you're going to do great." Maya told him honestly. "It's okay to feel overwhelmed. You are going to med school. It would be weird if you felt at ease. It's hard. You are allowed to feel like it's hard. "

Josh smiled at her. "I knew you would understand. Everyone else told me that it's going to be fine and that it's not that hard."

"People suck. They give advice on stuff they never experience and know nothing about." Maya said.

"What about you? What's been going on with you lately?" Josh asked her.

"Oh nothing, I am just crippled by the weight of deciding what I want to do for the rest of my life." Maya said in a mock cheery voice.

"That's hard too." Josh said. "You know, they always tell you that you have to know and be prepared but the truth is no one knows. We are all lost and trying to find ourselves and that is okay. If you knew what you wanted to be since you were five, that's great, but if you are still trying to figure it out, that's fine too."

"You are so wise Josh Matthews." Maya mocked him. "Ah, the wisdom that comes with age." Josh laughed against his will.

"My, my. Will I ever be so lucky to grow into such maturity?"

"Well, it's only three years between us, you'll get there eventually." Josh teased her.

He looked at her with his baby blue eyes and Maya could feel herself quiver.

"Are you cold?" He asked and put a big blanket over both of them.

"No, I'm just tired." Maya told him.

He looked at the big clock on the wall. "It's almost five in the morning. Maybe we should get some sleep." He suggested.

"We don't have to. I'll just lay down for a bit and rest my eyes and you keep talking to me." She rested her head on a pillow that looked a lot more comfortable than it actually was, but Maya was too tired to care. Covered in a blanket, she closed her eyes.

"You know I was just kidding earlier." She said. "I really appreciate that you understand. Thanks."

"Any time Hart. I am always here for you."

Maya fell asleep instantly. Josh looked at her for a while until he dozed off too. He doesn't remember the exact moment he fell asleep but he remembers the last thought he had before that.

"She looks beautiful."

XXXXXX

Maya and Josh slept for a couple of hours until Riley woke them up screaming "What have I done?" over and over again.

Maya jolted off of the bay window and sat up straight. Josh opened his eyes but remained laying down.

"You." Riley pointed to Maya. "Why did you let me do that?"

"Do what?" Maya was still half asleep.

"I kissed him." Riley screamed.

"What? You kissed someone? Who?" Josh was intrigued.

"How was the kiss?" Maya asked.

"It was the best kiss I ever had." Riley smiled thinking about Lucas but quickly went back to being mad. "That's beside the point. I shouldn't have done that. That was wrong."

"What's so wrong about that?" Josh asked.

"Yeah Riles, it sounds like you had fun." Maya said.

"I just broke up with someone. I am not that person who kisses strangers in a bar. That's not what was supposed to happen."

"Why not? Yesterday you couldn't even get out of the bed and now you are talking to us all because you saw there were other guys beside Charlie. You are not less pure because you kissed a boy you only knew for one night." Maya said to her friend.

"She's right Riley. I can't even count how many times I kissed a girl I barely knew." Josh told her.

"That many, huh?" Maya couldn't help but say. Josh though she was just teasing him.

"Like you've never kissed a stranger?" Josh asked Maya.

"Actually, Maya never kissed a guy." Riley said before Maya could stop her.

Maya's cheeks burned red. She couldn't believe Riley just told him that. She couldn't even look him in the eye. But Josh didn't use this piece of information against her.

"How come?" He was a little surprised.

"I just never liked anyone enough for that." Maya got up and headed to the fridge.

Josh and Riley followed her to the kitchen.

"Come on. There had to be someone." Josh teased her.

"No. there wasn't anyone." Maya poured milked over her cereal. Riley and Josh did the same. They all sat down at the kitchen table to eat.

"I don't believe that for a second." Josh wasn't convinced.

"Why is that so hard to believe?" Maya asked him.

"Because you're gorgeous." Josh stated. "Guys are always all over you. You can't tell me that you never liked any of them?"

"Guys are not all over me. No guy ever even asked me out." Maya said pretending her heart didn't skip a beat when he called her gorgeous.

"That's ridiculous." Josh shook his head and stuffed him mouth with cereal.

"Why do you care so much uncle Josh? Maya knows how beautiful and smart she is without needing a guy to tell her, so why does it matter to you so much?" Riley asked him.

"I just think a beautiful women should be appreciated. Like a piece of art." Josh explained.

"You think of me like an art piece?" Maya asked, not knowing whether she was flattered or annoyed.

"I guess you can say that." Josh answered vaguely.

"What makes you think of me like that?" Maya wanted to know.

"I don't know." Josh paused. "You are messy and powerful and beautiful and you make people feel something when they look at you."

"Oh." Maya was able to say. She felt her cheeks turn red.

"I have to get going. I have to study for a test next week." Josh said and quickly left.

"What's going on with the two of you?" Riley was curious.

"Nothing." Maya offered her usual answer. "There is nothing going on between us."

"Are you sure? Because that didn't feel like nothing." Riley said with a kind voice.

Maya couldn't keep it a secret any more. She had to tell someone and who better than her best friend. "Okay, I have to tell you something." Maya started. "I like him Riles. And it's been going on for a while so it's not just a crush."

"Who?" Riley still didn't get it.

"Josh?" Realization flooded her suddenly. "You like Josh?"

Maya nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Her best friend asked. "How long has this been going on?"

"Two years. And I don't know why I didn't tell you. I guess it hurt less if I didn't talk about it. And I tried to not like him. I swear I did. I stayed away. But now he says he wants to be my friend again and I can't pretend anymore." Maya pored her heart out. It felt good to finally let it out.

"Oh, sweetie." Riley felt bad. "I didn't know. I am so sorry you felt like that and didn't tell me. We could've gone through this together." The girls hugged.

"You can't help me with this. We can't go through everything together." Maya said.

"You think so?" Riley was offended. "Just watch me."

"You can't get involved." Maya warned her best friend.

"I am offended you'd even say that." Riley said in her hurt voice.

"I know you Riles. You need to butt out." – Maya said firmly.

"I can't promise you that. I want what's best for you sweetie. And keeping this inside isn't good for you. You have to realize…" She was interrupted by her ringtone. Riley looked at the screen and said confusedly: „That's weird. It's an unknown number."

Maya's face flooded with realization. "It's the guy!" She screamed.

"What guy?" Riley didn't understand.

"The guy!" Maya said enthusiastically. She continually slapped Riley's forearm as she tried to explain herself. "The handsome guy. From last night. The best kiss of your life. You gave him your number."

"I can't answer that." Riley panicked.

"Why not?" Maya was annoyed.

"Because he'll ask me out. I'm not ready." She explained.

"What is stopping you? You're single, he's good looking. You hit it off. I don't see the problem." Maya tried to reason with her.

"It's too soon." Riley refused to listen to her friend. She pun the ringing phone done on the counter and walked away. Maya followed her.

"You are scared, aren't you?"

"No." Riley denied it.

"That's it, you're scared." Maya said with a huge grin. "And you're giving me advice."

"It's not the same." Riley said. The phone still rang behind them.

"You're right it's not. You want me to tell your uncle that I love him and risk it being incredible awkward for the rest of my life and all I want you to do is go out with a guy you actually like and who likes you."

"Fine. I am terrified. Charlie broke my heart. I thought we would be together forever. I can't go through that again. I am not done going through this yet. It's only been four days." Riley said.

"Charlie was a jerk. You were never going to last. And I am not asking you to marry the guy. Just go out with him once." Maya tried to convince her.

Riley stopped to think for a second. She knew that the only way to get her friend to do what's right for her is to give something in return. She was ready to make a deal.

"How about this." Riley started with a slick smile. "I'll go out with him if you tell Josh how you feel."

"No way." Maya said and turned around towards the kitchen. "Absolutely not."

Riley followed her. "Either we are both getting over our fear, or neither one of us is." Riley sounded serious. Maya turned around to look at her. She hated that idea. She didn't want to tell Josh because she knew he doesn't feel the same way about her. She didn't want to make things even more awkward and she knew how much it would hurt her to get rejected. But on the other hand, she had nothing to lose. Her relationship with Josh was already fading and this way Riley has a real shot at love or at the very least, she'll get some help moving on. Reluctantly, Maya put out her hand and said: "Deal." Riley took her hand and shook it.

"Now answer the phone." Maya ordered.

The grin from Riley's face disappeared. She took the phone in her hand but before she had the chance to answer the call, the phone stopped ringing.

"Saved by the bell." She declared with an even bigger smile.

"Not so fast, young lady." Maya was fast to burst her bubble. "He'll call again."

"How can you be so sure?" Riley disagree.

"The phone rang for three minutes, the boy won't give up so fast." Maya said, sure of herself. Riley was doubtful but soon enough, the phone rang again.

Riley took in a deep breath, her hand was shaking.

"You can do this." Maya encouraged her.

"Hello?" Riley answered the phone.

"Hey Riley. It's Lucas. The guy from last night." Lucas wasn't sure if she remembered. They had a lot to drink.

"I remember." Riley said. "Did you get home okay last night?" She frowned. She didn't know what to ask him. Maya was holding back the laughter. Lucas chuckled on the other end of the line.

"I did. Thanks for asking." He said. "Look, I'm just going to get straight to the point." Riley could tell that he was nervous. "I had a lot of fun last night. I can't remember the last time I felt so good. And I would really like to see you again. Let me take you out. We can go where ever you want. What do you say?" He waited impatiently for the answer. Riley didn't leave him waiting for too long.

"I accept your invitation." Maya started to laugh loudly. Riley acted like she never even talked to a guy before.

Lucas smiled widely on the other side. "Good. I was a little scared you'd say no." He sounded relieved.

"I had a good time last night too." Riley assured him.

"I'm glad." He said. "So, where do you want to go?"

"Surprise me." Riley said.

"Alright. I will. How about next Friday?" He suggested.

"I'm free that night." She said. "You're in lucky." Riley didn't know why she was so nervous. She didn't even want to go out with him. She was only doing it for Maya. So why did she care so much?

"I really am." He responded and made Riley smile.

"I'll talk to you later." Riley told him.

"Looking forward to it." He said. Riley put down her phone and breathed out.

"That wasn't so bad." Maya flashed a big smile towards her.

"It was a lot harder than you'd think." Riley didn't want to tell Maya about the little butterflies that nested in her stomach.

"It's your turn now." Riley ordered her friend.

"Mine is a little more complicated." Maya said. She saw Riley was about to protest but Maya interrupted her first. "I'll do it the next time I see him. I promise."

Riley wasn't too happy about it but she finally agreed.

XXXXXX

The following week flew by quickly. Riley would never admit it to Maya, but she didn't dread the fast approaching Friday as much as she thought she would. She found herself excited. She spend her days trying to remember every moment of that night in the bar. She wondered if Lucas was going to kiss her again. A part of her wanted him to be a perfect gentleman and not try to kiss her on their first official date but an equally big part of her wanted him to push her against the wall and kiss her like he did that night. When she didn't think about his lips on her neck, she thought about what she was going to wear. She wanted to look good. Even better than the first time they met. She spent days looking through every piece of clothing she owned. Nothing seemed good enough.

Maya was grateful Riley was so occupied. That meant she could postpone her part of the deal. Josh didn't come to the Matthew's apartment the whole week. He had a lot to study that week and Maya wasn't complaining. She knew she had to tell him. But that didn't make it any easier. She knew she was going to see him this weekend because he promised to come over for Saturday's family lunch and she tried to make herself ready. She practiced in her head the speech she would deliver to him. In her mind she was very poised and eloquent. She wasn't nervous or scared. And at the end of every scenario she played in her mind, Josh always said he liked her back. Maya knew reality was going to end up different but at least in her mind she was free to fantasize and hope until reality crushes every bit of it.

And suddenly it was Friday. Riley was nervous and Maya helped her get ready.

"You look beautiful, Riles." Maya said as her best friend tried her ninth dress.

"It's not good enough." Riley complained as she stared at her reflection.

"Honey, you look beautiful in everything you wear. That dress is gorgeous." Riley put on a short sleeved black dress that reached just above her knees, with a white collar and hung loosely from her waist. Her hair was curly and she had a little make up on that accentuated her eyes and lips.

Maya smiled at how nervous her friend looked. "And to think you didn't want to go."

Riley blushed slightly. "Shut up." She said and ran back to her closet to find the perfect pair of shoes to go with the dress. She sat her mind on an ankle length black boots with a one inch heel.

She took her leather jacket off the hanger and looked in the mirror again. She finally believed she looked beautiful. The doorbell rang and Riley jumped to open the door. Her hands were sweating and her mouth was suddenly dry. She opened the door but it wasn't Lucas on the other side of it. It was Josh. Riley chuckled ominously.

"What?" Josh was confused by her reaction.

"Oh, nothing. I just love the universe sometimes." She said. Maya walked into the living room, hopping she'd get to see the boy who mangled her best friend's mind. Her heart stopped when she saw Josh.

"I really love the universe." Riley said quietly to herself.

"Hey." Josh smiled at Maya.

"I didn't know you were coming." Maya said.

"I needed a night off from the studying and I thought I'd come over and hang out with you guys." Josh explained.

"Well I have a date. But Maya is free." Riley couldn't help but laugh.

"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?" Maya asked.

"I am. I really am." Riley laughed. Josh stood in between them, confused.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"Josh, would you think that friends who don't keep their end of the deal even when the other party completed their parts are bad friends?" Riley asked with a smirk.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about it and don't answer that." Maya jumped in before Riley had a chance to tell Josh everything.

The doorbell rang again and Riley's smile was replaced with a look of fear. It was Maya's turn to laugh now.

"What is going on with you two?" Josh asked.

"Just watch." Maya pointed to Riley.

Riley went to open the door and Lucas waited on the other side.

"Hey." Riley said.

"Hi." Lucas replayed. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks." Riley blushed.

"Is that the best kiss of her life?" Josh asked Maya so Riley couldn't hear.

Maya nodded.

"Are you going to introduce us Riles?" Josh asked. He smiled as wide as Maya now.

"Well actually Josh, I already met him." Maya said.

"Really?" Josh played along.

"Do you want me to tell you how I met him?" She asked him.

"Okay, we're leaving." Riley said and pushed Lucas through the door. Lucas waved to Maya and Josh.

Maya and Josh laughed as soon as the doors closed.

"It's so easy to mess with her." Josh said.

"And fun too." Maya replayed. She went to make popcorn in the microwave.

"Want to watch a movie?" Maya asked.

"Sure." Josh said. He sat on the kitchen counter next to her and asked: "So what was it with you and Riley tonight?"

"What do you mean?" Maya tried not to look at him.

"What was with all that laughing?"

Maya took in a deep breath. She had to tell him. She made the deal with Riley and she already had a week to get ready. There was no avoiding it anymore. She looked at him. Really looked at him. His smile, his blue eyes, the way he leaned his hands on the counter. She smiled. He was very handsome. He made her feel very calm. She sat on the counter next to him and turned to face him.

"I have to tell you something." She told him.

"I'm listening." He said, smiling at her. The microwave beeped and Maya turned to take the popcorn out.

Saved by the bell.

 **A/N:Hey guys. I love to hear from you so let me know what you think in the comments. Do you like the story? Do you think Maya should tell Josh how she feels?**


	3. The first night

"Sorry about them." Riley said as soon as they left the apartment.

"Don't worry about that." Lucas said. I'm just glad you said yes when I asked you out." They left her apartment building and walked down the street.

"So where are we going?" Riley wanted to know what exactly she said yes to.

"You said to surprise you, so I'm not going to tell you." Lucas said with a teasing smile.

"I don't actually like surprises." Riley said.

"I am already learning so much about you." Lucas said. "Aren't you glad you said yes to me?"

"I don't know." Riley teased. "Ask me at the end of the night. He laughed. "Deal."

"So where are you taking me?" She was curious to know.

"We are going ice skating." Lucas said a little timidly. He didn't know if she would like the idea. Panicked splashed Riley's face. She remembered the last time she went ice skating. It was with Charlie that time he said he loved her for the first time. Riley didn't know if she was ready to be reminded of him for a whole night.

"But there aren't any ice skating rinks open yet." Riley was confused. It was September. It wasn't even that cold.

"I know a guy." Lucas said mysteriously.

"I thought you didn't know anyone in the city." Riley mocked.

"Fine, Zay knows a guy." Lucas corrected himself.

"So you booked a skating rink just to impress me?"

"I just love ice skating. It has nothing to do with you." He said and she laughed sheepishly. "But you will be impressed."

They took a cab to the secretive location, deep in Brooklyn. They talked the whole way there. They talked about their parents and pets, best friends and favorite colors. Riley found out what kind of food he liked and what kind he detested. The conversation was light and he made her laugh a lot. Riley enjoyed his company a lot more than she thought she would. She spent the whole week imagining how this date would go and he was a lot funnier then she remembered. He held the doors opened for her, he looked at her like she was the only person in the world and he listened to her every word. She didn't pine of Charlie when she was with him. He wasn't just a rebound. Riley knew he could never be. When they finally got out of the cab, Lucas led her to a dark industrial looking building on the corner of the street. Lucas took her hand and she didn't stop him.

"We don't have to go if you don't want to." He offered. "We can do something else."

Riley thought about it for a second. She could make them turn around and make some new memory somewhere else. Or maybe this was just what she needed. They could rewrite history and ice skating can be a great new memory. And if Lucas happens to turn out to be as bad as Charlie, what's another miserable memory to add up. She was bad at skating anyways. She decided to stay.

"It's fine. I love it." She said.

Lucas led her inside the building.

"I knew this was too good to be true. You are going to kill me now, aren't you?" She joked.

Lucas laughed. "If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't have taken you all the way to Brooklyn."

"What better place is there?" She laughed.

Lucas led her down the long dark hall. It seemed he knew his way around pretty well. Riley would've lied if she said she wasn't a little scared.

"We're here." Lucas announced. He reached with his free hand and turned on the lights. The whole room lid up and Riley saw a big ice rink in the middle of the room. The lights changed color every few minutes and music played in the background.

Riley took in the room she found herself in. "I didn't even know this place existed." She said in awe.

"I'm glad you like it." He said with a huge grin. He took her to choose the right size skates and led her to the rink when they both put on a pair.

"I have to warn you, I am very clumsy and there is a big chance that I won't come out looking very attractive tonight." Riley said.  
Lucas took both of her hands in his and led her on the ice. "I don't think that's possible." He replied.

They started going round in circles. Lucas never let go of her hand. Riley felt a certain freedom with Lucas that she never had with Charlie. Maybe it was because she didn't know him as well or maybe it was just because Lucas was the kind of person who could never make you feel uncomfortable.

"Impressed yet?" Lucas asked after half an hour of pure fun and ice skating.

"It takes a lot more to impress me." Riley flirted the best to her abilities.

"You are a very hard person to please." Lucas flirted back. He faced her and wrapped his hands around her waist. He skated backwards and Riley skated towards him. He bumped into the handrail and stopped them. Riley knew he was about to kiss her. His breathing got faster and his eyes fell on her lips. She smiled and closed her eyes. Their lips met and Riley felt the same spark from the last time. She was relieved it wasn't just the alcohol. This time the kiss was soft and tamed. Not as rushed but still as passionate. Riley liked the change of paste. They kissed for what seemed like forever and Riley still didn't think it lasted long enough.

XXXXXX

Maya and Josh sat on the couch watching a movie. They watched "It happened one night" since they both enjoyed old movies. Maya didn't tell him yet. She was about to, she came so close but then the popcorns distracted them and before she knew it they were on the couch, watching the movie. Maya was glad. She realized she wasn't ready yet.

"Is it weird that we are here alone even though neither one of us lives here?" Maya asked to defuse the tension between them she created in her mind.

"A little bit, yes." Josh laughed. "Where are Cory and Topanga?"

"Date night." Maya answered.

"So Cory and Topanga have a night out, even Riley is on a date and the two of us are here on this sofa." Josh summarized.

"What's wrong with this sofa?" Maya joked with a confidence in her voice she would've lost the second she told him the truth. Who said telling the truth was a necessary feature to a happy life? He didn't have to know. They were all better not knowing. She decided to break the deal she made with Riley. It had to be done.

"Nothing." Josh said. "I honestly wouldn't like to spend my Friday night in any other way."

Maya blushed. "You would've enjoyed it more with someone else." It was a thought embedded deeply in her mind. Maya knew Josh would never see her as someone he could possibly be with. She will never be anything but a friend to him. She strongly believed that.

"It's not the sofa that's special Maya, it's you." And then he said things like that. Things that messed with Maya's mind. And for a second her heart would flutter and she would think she had a chance with him. She would picture him as he confessed his undying love for her. And then she'd snap back to reality.

"I am amazing company." Maya joked. "But I'm sure if an opportunity presented itself, you'd run off to make out with some poor girl with daddy-issues who'd think she could change you and your loose-moral ways and make out with her."

"Would you be jealous?" Josh teased.

"My heart would be breaking into a million pieces." She said as dramatically as she possibly could and put both of her arms over her heart like she was in a production of a Shakespeare play, all to hide the fact that she would actually be devastated.

"Well I couldn't possibly live with the guilt of breaking a young maiden's heart, especially if the maiden is a fair as you." Josh said with a horrible British accent.

Maya took a moment for his words to sink in. "Why does melodrama transfer us to the middle ages dialect?" She asked, making Josh laugh.

"I guess we are just weird like that." He said.

They looked at each other and laughed for a while.

"We should get back to the movie." Maya averted her eyes back to the screen before she could do something she'd regret, like kiss him.

"Yeah." Josh agreed. They watched the movie until it ended, with no more interruptions.

XXXXXX

"You have to show me." Riley pleaded.

"No way. Absolutely not." Lucas made the mistake of telling her he used to train figure skating with his sister when he was younger.

"I thought you wanted to impress me." Riley joked.

"Impress you, not break my neck." Lucas protested.

"Oh come on. There must be one move that isn't too dangerous that you remember." She begged.

"I'll do it, but only because you are very cute." He finally accepted. Riley screamed in excitement.

"Just don't die. I can't have that on my hands." Riley warned him.

"I can't die. You'd miss me terribly." He teased.

"I wouldn't miss that big ego." Riley said.

Lucas took in a deep breath and started skating backward for the quarter of the ring then he jumped and did a pirouette in midair that continued even when he stick the perfect landing.

"Is this your move? You bring girls into an ice rink, sweep them of their feet with your fancy pirouettes and confuse them with your southern charms?" Riley questioned him.

"Is it working?" He asked.

"A little." She said.

Riley blushed when he looked at her and she lost her footing. Lucas tried to catch her as she fell but instead he landed on top of her. They both laughed.

"Are you okay?" He asked concerned.

Riley kissed him in response.

XXXXXX

Josh noticed when Maya fell asleep because she snores, even though she claims she doesn't. Her head fell on his shoulder just before the movie ended and Josh didn't want to wake her up even after it ended. He looked at her as she was sleeping. She seemed so peaceful. He wondered what she dreamt about. Josh liked spending time with Maya. She was smart and funny and he trusted her. She was a rare kind of friend to have and Josh never wanted to lose her. That's way he was so sad they started to drift apart. He detested the idea of not having her in his life. He didn't have a lot of people to talk to and Maya was as good of a friend to him as she was to Riley. The Matthew's are very lucky to have a Maya Hart in their life. Josh didn't move too much. He was skipping through channels trying to find something interesting when Maya opened her eyes.

"Oh god, I fell asleep." She was disappointed.

"You only missed like 10 minutes of the movie. Want to watch the ending again?" He was very sweet to offer.

"No it's fine, I watched the movie before." Maya said in her sleepy voice.

"Why did we watch it again if you saw it already?" Josh asked.

"I like that movie. I'd probably still watch it, even if you weren't here with me."

"It's a good movie." Josh agreed.

"What should we do now?" Maya fished for an activity.

"You should go to sleep since you clearly need it." Josh suggested.

"I am not that sleepy. I just dozed off for a while." Maya said in her defense.

"Want to take Auggie's telescope and look at the stars on the balcony?" He suggested.

"There aren't many perks of living on the twelfth floor." She said, "But this is definitely one of them."

"I'm glad you like the idea."

XXXXXX

"I had fun tonight." Riley told Lucas as they stood outside of her apartment. "And I honestly didn't think I would.

"And the dinner after the ice skating wasn't bad." Lucas agreed.

"I told you Victor's taco stand is the best in Brooklyn." Riley said proudly.

"And you were right." He said with a smile. "Next time we'll eat somewhere nicer."

"Oh, you think there's a next time?" Riley teased.

"I was hopeful." He leaned in closer.

"Kiss me again and I might just say yes." Riley said with a big smile. He listened to her. He loved that he could taste her smile through the kiss. It made him smile too. If anyone were to pass by at that moment, they'd think these two were together for a long time. There were moments tonight when they both thought they knew each other their whole life. Riley never though it could be this easy with someone and Lucas never hoped he'd meet someone as great as Riley.

He slowly pulled away. "So about that second date…" Lucas started.

"It was an okay kiss. Not really in my top ten." Riley said with a bored tone. "Okay goodnight." She added and closed the door in Lucas's face. He was confused, that's not how he pictured the night would end. A second after, Riley opened the door again: "Pick me up tomorrow at four. I am taking you out." She smiled and gave him a quick kiss. Lucas stood in front of her door smiling. He couldn't believe how fast he was falling for this girl.

Riley was surprised Maya and Josh weren't in the living room. She wondered what happened when Maya told Josh she liked him. Maybe it went so well they are in a bedroom right now. She just hoped they weren't in her bedroom. She headed to her room when she spotted them on the balcony through the window. They were looking at the stars through the telescope and laughing. Riley smiled jumping to conclusion thing went well. She couldn't wait until Maya told her everything. She went to her room and got ready for bed.

XXXXXX

"Estera cannalabis is not a real constellation." Maya couldn't breathe from all the laughter.

"I'm sorry did you study astrology for a semester?" Josh asked with a mock offence.

"No." Maya was still laughing. "And neither did you, you studied astronomy."

"Well, that just undermined everything I said in the last fifteen minutes." Josh laughed.

"Oh, it undermined everything you said in the past fifteen years." Maya couldn't stop laughing. Josh loved that he was the cause of her joy.

"Then you tell me what we are watching since you are such an expert." He acted hurt.

"It can't be that hard." Maya accepted the challenge. "They did it in 17th century, we can do it now." Maya looked through the telescope again. She looked through it for a while but all the stars looked the same to her. Maya didn't know what she was observing anymore then Josh did.

"I give up." She admitted defeat reluctantly. "I know nothing."

"We are garbage people." Josh agreed. "The 17th century people are better than us. They threw their feces on the street and they are still better than us."

Maya laughed hysterically. "I am never star gazing with you again." She said.

"But I am so fun to be around." Josh replayed enthusiastically.

"But you know nothing about space. I need an expert." Maya said.

"Women are so needy." He sighed.

Maya hit his arm playfully.

"It's getting late." She said when the laughter died down.

"I should go back to campus." Josh agreed.

"You could spend the night here." Maya offered. "I don't know when everyone else will be home and I feel kind of weird sleeping here all alone."

Josh nodded. "I'll stay."

"Good." Maya blushed again. They said goodnight to each other and went to sleep. Josh got comfortable on the couch and Maya headed to Riley's room.

She was surprised to see that Riley was already home and asleep. She dreaded the morning because that would mean she had to tell Riley she didn't complete her end of the bargain.

 **A/N: Hey guys. It's been a while. So sorry for the wait. Hope the long chapter makes up for it. I am always looking forward to your reviews and follows so don'tbe shy.**


	4. The first girlfriend

Maya couldn't fall asleep that night. She tossed around and stared at the ceiling until she couldn't take it anymore. She got up quietly, so she wouldn't wake up her friend and walked into the living room where Josh was laying asleep. She walked to the couch and set on the coffee table next to him. She watched him sleep for a while. She wondered if telling him will still count if he was asleep. After all, Riley never specified the terms of their agreement. Maya knew she was grasping for nothing here, but her heart beat so loudly in her chest and she heard buzzing in her ears and she knew that there is no way tonight ends with Josh knowing the truth. But she had to get her piece of mind.

"Josh?" She whispered. "Can you hear me?" He didn't respond so she continued.

"I am such a coward. I know that. But you scare the shit out of me. I am not afraid of anything. I am strong and fearless and yet my knees buckle every time I hear your voice and my heart pounds so fast when you are near me that I think there is something medically wrong me. And that scares me. I am not used to this feeling. It's new to me and it terrifies me. I don't want to be in love. Especially not with you, but I have no choice. And I know you don't feel the same way. I get it and it's fine. But I can't risk telling you if there is even the slightest chance that it may ruin this friendship. Because I am okay with not having you as my boyfriend but I wouldn't be able to breathe if you weren't my friend and if we didn't talk at all." She paused as her lower lip quiver. Tears felt heavy in her eyes and she tried her best to not let them roll down her cheeks.

"You are a very sound sleeper." She joked and smiled to herself. She stayed for another minute just looking at him. He looked so peaceful. She felt a little creepy being there when he wasn't aware of her presence so she went back to bed and this time she fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow.

XXXXXX

Riley woke up to find her best friend sleeping next to her. She tried to wait up for her but she was too tired. Riley couldn't wait to hear what happened between her friend and Josh.

"Wake up!" She screamed and shook Maya's shoulder. "What happened? Did you tell him? Are you in love?"

Maya opened her eyes and smacked Riley's hand until her best friend let her go. "I told him." She lifted her upper body and sat next to Riley who squealed in excitement.

"But there is a slight chance he was asleep." She said, almost as a whisper.

"But we agreed!" Riley screamed.

"I am sorry, but technically, you never said he needs to be awake." Maya argued her case.

"I can't believe you. We had a deal." Riley said, sounding hurt. She stepped off of the bed and headed to the bathroom. Maya followed her before she could leave the room.

"I am sorry. I tried. I really did. I almost told him but then… I just couldn't. Please understand." Maya said apologetically.

"I don't understand. Why is it so hard for you to open up and let anyone in? I am trying to help you but you won't let me. I made the stupid bet so you could tell Josh and maybe be happy for once in your life." Riley said in anger.

"Like it's so easy." Maya didn't feel the need to apologize anymore. "How dare you? I didn't grow up like you. I didn't have Cory and Topanga who loved each other since the age of two. I didn't have parents who loved me and supported me no matter what. Instead I had an alcoholic father and a depressed mother who when they weren't screaming at each other, weren't talking at all. Your father had to teach me how to ride a bike. Your mom brought the cookies for bake sales in my name. The only memories of my dad I have involve him yelling or throwing glass bottles." She got angrier and her voice got louder. "So you don't get to tell me I need to be happy and open up because every time I smile at you or tell you something personal I am going against everything I know and everything I am! Every day I get out of the bed and put on a clean pair of underwear is a victory for me. I can't tell him. Because I can't handle one more disappointment. I can't lose the small number of friends I have. So back off."

Riley was flabbergasted after Maya's speech. She knew about Maya's past and what kind of childhood she had but Maya never talked about it. And Riley didn't realized it was still bothering her. But of course it was. How silly of her to think things like that just go away like that. Maya was right about Riley. Riley was sheltered from everything bad in the world, wrapped up in her parents love where she was safe. And she just realized Maya never had that. And it made her feel guilty.

"I..." Riley stuttered. "I am so sorry. I forget…you are always so strong I forget what you went through. I have no right to push you."

"No, I'm sorry." Maya retorted. She knew Riley meant well. "I know you only push me because you want what's best for me and a lot of times I am thankful for that, but you are not always right. Sometimes it's just too much."

"I feel so bad. I had a great time with Lucas last night and I ruined your night by pushing you too hard." Riley felt like the worst friend in the world.

"It wasn't a bad night. I had a lot of fun last night. It was nice to be just the two of us." Maya said.

"Do you want to talk about your parents? Or anything else that's bothering you?" Riley offered.

"No. I am fine. Seriously. There is nothing we need to talk about." Maya assured her.

"I am a very good listener. And you can always talk to me. We can…"

"You're pushing again." Maya interrupted her.

"What is wrong me?" Riley questioned.

"Nothing. It's just who you are. And I love who you are." Maya told her and smiled.

The two girls hugged and everything felt right again. Maya and Riley were always going to be in each other's lives. Friends like these don't come around often, maybe once in a life time if you are lucky and they both knew that no matter how many times they fight or disagree with each other, they will always be there when the other one needs them. Who needs a boy when you have that?

XXXXXX

Breakfast at Matthews went on as usual that morning. Topanga made bacon and eggs and Cory questioned everyone on how they were going to spend their Saturday. Maya and Riley sat next to each other in silence, as Auggie told them about the date he had planned with Ava. Josh was sitting across from Maya and he didn't lift his head from his plate. Maya didn't eat much, she mostly shifted food around her plate.

"Why are you two so quiet? You're never this quiet? What's wrong?" Cory turned to the girls, noticing their out of order behavior.

"Nothing's wrong." Riley assured them with a smile.

"We're just tiered." Maya added.

"We came home after all of you fell asleep and we got up before everyone else and we are still able to smile and talk to our family during breakfast." Cory stated.

"Leave them alone." Topanga defended them. "They'll talk when they're ready. They always do."

"There is nothing to say." Maya jumped in. "For once we have nothing going on."

"Well, I have a date today." Riley said and her cheeks got red, very fast. She looked at her plate, avoiding everyone's eyes. They all looked at her.

"Honey, "Topanga chirped. "That's great. Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

"Who is this strange young man? How did you meet? Do we know him?" Cory question with his best authority voice.

Riley started to blush even harder. She couldn't tell her parents she got drunk and made out with him at a bar. Her poor father would probably have a heart attack if he knew the truth.

"I introduced them. At the bar we went to last week." Maya jumped in to save her drowning friend.

"And how do you know him?" Topanga asked.

"He is a friend of a guy I know from my NYU art class. He's a freshman there. They both are." Maya delivered her lie with a nice red bowtie on top of it. After all, most of it was true, She's been taking art classes at NYU program all summer and the Matthews knew that she must have really knew the guy, so he wasn't just some stranger and he is only a year older so that's not a problem.

"Yap." Riley said nervously next to her friend.

"Why don't you invite him tonight? We'd love to meet him." Topanga said with a smile. Maya wasn't sure if she bought her lie.

"No offence mom, but until I figure out how I feel about him, no one's meeting him." Riley said sheepishly.

"We're not going to scare him off. We just want to get to know him and see if he is the right guy for you." Cory said.

"No offence, but you though Charlie was a nice guy and look how well that turned out." Riley reminded them.

"We don't know how that turned out because you never told us what happened between the two of you." Topanga reminded her.

Riley always talked openly with her parents. She never lied to them and they never lied to her. But somewhere on that road of honesty, Riley grew up but her parents failed to see that. Riley knew it was hard on them, as it is on any other parent to see their child grow up but Riley hated that they still saw her as a little child. And as a result, she saw herself the same way when she looked in their eyes. So she didn't talk to them about boys and dating or kissing and sex.

She only introduced them to Charlie because her dad already knew him from school, and even that was awkward enough. She couldn't imagine telling them how it ended and why. There are some things a kid doesn't share with her parents. That's why she had Maya.

"It doesn't matter what happened. We just weren't right for each other." Riley said and took a bite of her bacon. For someone who didn't lie to her parents, she was sure getting a lot of practice.

"I know there's something you're not telling us." Topanga said sadly. "I just wish you trusted us enough to tell us."

"Well, I will be here tonight as usual." Maya said in an attempt to change the subject.

"And I will come too." Josh added. "In fact, I was wondering if I could bring someone over?" He asked.

"Who?" Cory asked curiously.

"My girlfriend."

XXXXXX

Maya could've sworn her heart stopped beating. The words kept repeating in her mind.

 _My girlfriend. My girlfriend. My girlfriend._

Since when does he have a girlfriend? She could feel Riley's eyes burning a hole in the back of her head. She couldn't move. Her eyes were stuck on her plate like smeared eggs and pieces of bacon were a masterpiece wordy of Degas, her favorite painter. She couldn't hear Cory and Topanga express their excitement over the news or Josh telling them about his new girl, she could only paint a picture of the beautiful creature in her mind. She pictured her tall and gorgeous in every way Maya wasn't, the way she kisses and touches Josh in a way she was supposed to. She wondered about their first meeting and their first kiss. Maybe they already said they loved each other. Maybe they already started planning the wedding. Maybe she was pregnant or maybe they already eloped, how could she know how far along in the relationship they were.

How could he not have told her? They were sitting on the couch last night, they looked at the stars, they talked… Of course as friends. Only as friends.

Because she never told him. She spent two years loving him and dreaming about him. But she never told him. She had no right to feel cheated or disappointed. He didn't owe her anything.

She is probably a nice person too. Of course she is, Josh picked her. He wouldn't fall for her otherwise.

She could feel Riley's hand holding hers under the table. She didn't know how long Riley held her hand but she appreciated it. She took in a deep breath and gathered enough strength to look up at Josh. He was still talking about the girl. Maya smiled her best fake smile and said: "Congratulations."

She could fool everyone with her wide smile and big eyes but not Riley. Riley knew her. Riley knew she was falling apart.

"Want to help me pick up what to wear tonight?" Riley said as an excuse to get them away from the kitchen table.

Maya nodded and the two girls left the table.

XXXXXX

"I am going to cancel my date with Lucas. He'll understand." Riley said once they sat down on the bay window. The same bay window they always came to when they had trouble. There was something special they created at that seat, something only the two of them could understand.

"No, you're not. You're going on that date whether I have to drag you out there myself." Maya said.

"But you need me here." Riley insisted.

"I can handle myself tonight. You don't have to hold my hand through it." Maya responded.

"Then you say something came up and you can't come tonight after all." Riley started to make new plans.

"I have no excuse and I am always here. No one is going to believe I have somewhere better to go." Maya said.

"You're right." Riley hated to admit. "At least let me push the date for a couple hours so that I can be here when she comes."

"You don't have to do that." Maya said.

"I want to." Riley said. "Besides, I'll never be ready in time."

Maya smiled and nodded.

"Can we go to sleep now?" She asked. "I barely slept last night and I can really use some rest.

"Sure. I could use some rest too." Riley answered.

She texted Lucas to change their plans and then laid next to Maya. They both fell asleep immediately.

XXXXXX

When Riley opened her eyes, Maya was already raiding her closet in search of clothes that will make her look better than she ever had before. By the looks of it, she didn't have much luck, Riley thought.

She got up and joined her friend on the hunt for a perfect outfit for both of them.

"I don't know why I even bother. She looks like a model and I am going to look like a potato next to her." Maya said, annoyed.

"You've never even met her, you have no idea what she looks like." Riley chuckled.

"I just know it. My life works in a certain way. It's like Murphy's Law, where everything that can go wrong, will go wrong, except now they call it Maya's law." She explained.

Riley tried not to laugh, but failed. "Oh honey, I am so sorry." She said honestly. "But I bet you that there is no way she is going to be prettier than you." Riley assured her.

"You better be right." Maya said and picked out a red crop top to wear with a black high-waist skirt.

XXXXXXX

"Oh my god." Riley said when Amanda, Josh's new girlfriend walked in with him hand in hand. "She's like an upgraded version of you."

And she was right. Amanda was blond with blue eyes like Maya, but all the similarities stopped there. She was taller, skinnier, her teeth were whiter and even her voice sounded better. And most importantly, she was only two months younger than Josh.

"Damn you Amanda." She whispered to Riley. "Even I want to date her."

"Lucas can never meet her." Riley whispered back.

Amanda moved like an angel sent from heaven. Her movements were light, her skin was soft and she seemed very nice and smart for the first couple of minutes of their meeting.

They all took turns asking her questions. They were all curious.

"We are so excited to meet you. Josh only told us today that he has a girlfriend." Cory said.

"Josh keeps to himself a lot. I am really trying to get him out of his shell." Amanda said with a voice as sweet as honey.

"Are we talking about the same Josh?" Riley joked.

"So how did you guys meet?" Maya asked. She kept smiling and hopping no one would notice how hard this was for her.

"It's actually a funny story." Amanda started.

"I bet." Maya whispered so only Riley, who was sitting next to her could hear her.

"I was late for class and I was running down the hall." Josh started to tell the story.

"And I was on my way to the library to study." Amanda added.

"And I ran into her..."

"Literally…" Amanda laughed.

"And we both fell down. I fell on top of her…"

"And at first I was really mad and annoyed but then I looked into his eyes…"

"And I said 'I always thought this place was like hell and I never expected to meet an angel in hell.'"

"Which sounds very cheesy but it was actually very sweet." She said and looked at him the way Maya always pictured Josh would look at her.

Maya almost regretted asking the question. They were one of those couples that finished each other's sentences and they tell the story of their meeting like they've been telling it for years.

Maya felt like she was going to puke. "How lovely." She said instead.

"And how long have you been together?" Riley asked.

"About a month." Amanda answered with a big smile. "Time just flies when you're happy."

"How lovely." Maya said again. She had to stop saying that word.

Maya tried to hate her, but she couldn't. Amanda studied literature at NYU. She had three younger brothers that she has to raise by herself after her parents died when she was very young and she got a full scholarship to college based on her grades and her talent for writing. Mother Teresa had nothing on this girl.

Maya found herself wanting to be her when she grows up.

"Who's up for a game? Should we play scrabble?" Topanga offered after a couple of minutes of light chatter.

"I love scrabble." Amanda said with a big genuine smile.

"Of course she does." Maya whispered to Riley. They were all sitting in the living room. Amanda was sitting next to Josh and they were holding hands.

Topanga went to find the box for the game they were about to play.

Riley leaned in towards Maya and whispered: "It's still not too late. I can cancel."

"You can't cancel." She whispered back.

"I found the game. We can start now." Topanga announced her triumphant return.

"Take me with you." Maya whispered to her best friend.

"We have to come up with a good excuse." Riley whispered.

"Follow my lead." Maya said. She grabbed Riley's phone out of her hand and loudly exhaled: "Oh, no. You poor thing."

Everyone turned to face them.

"What's wrong?" Topanga asked.

"Her date just canceled. She is devastated." Maya said and turned to Riley who felt like a deer in headlights. She hated lying. Mostly because she was bad at it.

"Yes. I am devastated." She said in her best attempt to sound sad. Unfortunately, she sounded more like a programed robot.

"Yes, we should go get some ice cream to cheer you up. Great idea Mr. Matthews." Maya said over excitedly and pulled Riley off the chair and towards the door.

"Amanda it was lovely meeting you. Topanga, congratulations because let's face it, you're going to win at scrabble and Cory like always, full of good ideas. Don't wait up." And without giving anyone a chance to protest or ask questions, they were out and the doors behind them closed.

"So where are you meeting your boy toy?" Maya asked once all her boy problems stayed on the other side of that door.

"I wanted to take him to a picnic when we were supposed to meet at four, but now that it's almost seven, I told him to meet me at "Omalies' ".

"That cute Italian restaurant at the corner? Great, I'll walk you there on my way home." Maya said.

"You're coming with me. I am not leaving you alone." Riley put her foot down.

"I am not crashing your date." Maya meant it.

"You're not crashing. You're invited." Riley insisted.

"Sweetie, I know you don't know much about boys, but when they're on a date with you, they usually want to be with just you." Maya said.

Riley intertwined their arms and pushed her best friend out on the sidewalks of New York. "Well this boy will just have to deal. We're a package deal."

XXXXXX

"Omalies' " wasn't that special of a place but it had a big garden that made it one of the most magical places in New York at night. Maya and Riley arrived before Lucas. They sat at a table in the corner from where they could see all the people who passed by. A couple of minutes passed before Lucas showed up. Riley's whole face lid up when she saw him and Maya didn't miss that. She remembered the time Charlie used to make her smile like that. But there was something slightly different. Maybe her eyes sparkled a little harder or her smile was a little wider, Maya wasn't sure which.

They greeted each other with a long embrace. Maya wondered if Josh looked at Amanda the same way Lucas looked at Riley. And she asked herself if anyone was ever going to look at her like that.

"You remember Maya, right?" Riley said to Lucas.

"How could I forget. Hi." He held his hand out to her and Maya took it.

"I hope you don't mind if she joins us tonight. We had a bad day." Riley said with a hint of flirtation in her voice. Maybe she knew more about boys than Maya gave her credit for.

"Not at all. I am looking forward to getting to know your friend better." Lucas said with a huge smile and sat next to Riley and across from Maya. He seemed to be honest.

"You are either very understanding or extremely desperate." Maya said and Lucas laughed.

"I'll ask you at the end of the night which one do you think it is." He said.

"Maya, Lucas is a freshman at NYU and Lucas, Maya is taking art class at NYU." Riley shared with the group.

"You're an artist? That's amazing." Lucas sounded interested. "Are you planning to study art? NYU or some other college?"

"I don't know yet. I thought about applying somewhere abroad. I always liked the idea of traveling, maybe going far away from here." Maya said.

"A lot of bad memories?" Lucas asked her with a voice that said that maybe he knew what it felt like.

"Some good ones too." Maya said looking at Riley.

"I get wanting to run away. I couldn't wait to leave Texas. Don't get me wrong, I love it there, it's my home, but sometimes I just felt like I was…"

"Suffocating." Maya finished his sentence, knowing the feeling all too well herself.

"Exactly." Lucas said.

Maya didn't feel as weird sitting with them as she thought she would. Lucas seemed like a nice guy and he treated Riley right. She couldn't help but notice how they held hands the whole night. Riley seemed different around him. Maya didn't know how to explain it. The brunet had some new found poise and lightness to her that her friend never saw before. She looked like the hand she was holding so tenderly, took all the weight of the world off of her shoulders. Maya liked that. And not only was Lucas sweet and gentle with Riley, he seemed to have a general interest in what Maya had to say.

It was official, Maya approved. If she couldn't be happily in love, she was glad at least her friend got to be. And she could just live vicariously through her. For the rest of her life.

 **A/N: Hey guys. Sorry it took so long to update. I've been busy with college and when I had time I was stuck with a bad case of writers block. I think I've just been very tiered lately.** **Ninja Unicorn,** **abby wasy and everyone else, I hear you, I see you. Thank you so much for being invested in the story and liking it. You'll never know how much it all means to me. I am sorry I kept you waiting and hopefully it won't be so long before I post the next one.**


	5. The first scare

**A/N: Hey guys, I know, I know, I suck. I am so sorry it took so long for me to post again. I've been busy with school and life and hopefully it won't take so long for me to post again. Thank you all for messaging me asking for this, it really means a lot to me. Hope you like it and you're not too mad at me. I posted two chapters and hopefully, that makes up a little bit for the long pause. Hope you enjoy it. Comment and let me know what you think.**

Teleportation wasn't possible. Maya knew that. You can't leave one place and go to another in an instant without moving your legs. And yet Maya would paint in her room with the music on and she would be miles away. She'd visit the pyramids in Egypt, fields of violets, outer space and million more places that she would never even got to see, without the ability to paint them. She loved how it made her feel, to put a brush against the canvas and make something with her own two hands, something that didn't exist before she created it. Sometimes she spent hours in front of the canvas without realizing that any time has passed at all. She'd get lost in her work and it was her safety place. So this time, when Josh was leaning against her bedroom door, with his arms crossed and a big smile watching her, it was no wonder she didn't even notice. Josh stood there for ten whole minutes just looking at her. There is something magical about people when they are doing something they are passionate about and Josh couldn't help but stare in amazement at the most passionate girl he knew doing what she loves. He finally knocked on the door frame and her gaze fell on him. It's been two days since she saw him last. He was with his girlfriend and Maya didn't feel like her heart could handle seeing him for a while. She didn't go over to the Matthew's home since then. Instead she stayed home and painted.

"What are you doing here?" Her whole body reacted to his presence.

"You didn't return any of my calls." Josh said.

"I turned my phone off. I've been busy painting." She explained. It wasn't a lie. Maya was good with half-truths.

"I can see that. I am sorry I interrupted you." He said.

"Have you been standing there for a long time?" She nodded towards the door frame.

"Not very long." He responded. "Your concentration is amazing."

"Thanks." Maya said. It was weird. He broke her heart without even realizing it and she still didn't feel bad when she was around him.

"May I see it?" He asked, pointing at the work in front of her. She nodded and Josh slowly approached. Maya didn't start painting with a theme in mind. She would press the brush against the blank surface and by the time she finishes, her whole heart would be splattered over her work.

"It looks amazing." Josh said with a wide grin. "You are so talented."

"Thank you. But it's not finished yet." Maya answered with red cheeks. She was never very good with compliments.

"What were you trying to say with it?" Josh was curious.

"What do you think it says?" Maya asked.

"I am not very good with art. I am not sure I fully understand it." He said sheepishly.

"It's okay." Maya chuckled. "It's art. It's open to interpretation. There is no right or wrong answer." She encouraged him.

"Okay…umm…I think it's about heartbreak. It's very sad. There are a lot of dark colors and bleeding ring on the girl's hand looks like she was betrayed by someone she loved." He said. "I thought you always painted what you felt."

"Not necessarily." Maya answered quickly. She forgot how well he knew her. "Sometimes I get inspired by other things. This one is about my mom. She just got dumped by some guy."

"I thought the girl looked like you. I guess it's actually your mom." He concluded.

"So why are you here Josh?" Maya finally asked.

"You weren't answering your phone." He said again.

"We already covered that. Why were you calling me?" She asked.

"I wanted to talk to you." He started. "About Amanda." He finished after a little pause.

Maya plastered a wide smile on her face. Like a mask to hide her real emotion. Josh didn't know how every word out of his mouth took a little piece of her heart and stomped all over it.

"What about Amanda?" She asked cheerfully. Or at least Maya's version of cheerful.

"I like her. And you are one of the people whose opinion matter the most to me. You ran off the other day with Riley and I never had the chance to ask you what you thought of her." How could he be so perceptive and so clueless at the same time, Maya wondered.

"I loved her. She seems so amazing. You deserve someone amazing."

Josh smiled at that. "I hope you're not mad I didn't tell you sooner. I wanted to but we had so much fun the other night and I guess I kind of forgot." He said.

"You forgot you had a girlfriend?" Maya asked with a glimpse of hope behind her voice.

"No, I just…I forgot to mention it to you." He said and blushed.

"Right." Maya agreed.

"Are you free tonight? Want to hang out?" Josh asked. Maya didn't know if he meant just her or the two of them and his girlfriend but she didn't feel like she was ready for either.

"I wish I could but I need to finish this piece and a couple others and you know how I get when I work." She made up an excuse. Another half-truth.

"Right, complete isolation." Josh knew her. He was familiar with her habits and process. He knew she would spent days, sometimes even a whole week locked in her room just painting and drawing, without talking to anyone. Sometimes he thought she would spend her whole life like that if Riley didn't drag her out of her artistic zone. „Just don't disappear on us completely."

"I'll try not to." She smiled. "I'll call you when I'm done."

"Then I'll leave you alone." He said. And he did. Maya turned back to her painting. She just thought of another thing she had to add to it.

XXXXXX

"I am so glade you still took me out on a picnic." Lucas said. He was sitting on a blanket Riley brought next to the pond where they could feed the little ducks.

"I take my picnic duties very seriously." Riley said in her best serious voice. "I would never betray the secret vow I took of picnic organizing."

"I find that very attractive." Lucas said in a low voice. Riley blushed and lost her cool in one second. He had that effect on her. She knew what Maya would say in that situation. She would look at a guy seductively and whisper 'I am very attractive.' But Riley couldn't do that. Instead she smiled at him goofy, because that's the kind of smile she had and kissed him. What she didn't know is that Lucas wouldn't change that goofy smile and the soft touch of her lips on his for anything.

Riley thought that her whole life would be split into two parts: before Charlie and after Charlie. She never though there would ever be anyone else. And now here she was in a park on a chilly day, kissing a boy that wasn't Charlie. And she liked it. She liked Lucas. This has only been their third date but Riley knew this guy was special. Maybe it would be different with this guy. Maybe he wasn't going to hurt her.

"Where have you been all my life?" Lucas asked. Riley blushed even harder.

"You're only 19. You didn't wait for very long." She teased.

"Feels like forever." Lucas said, looking in to her eyes like he can see through her.

"You are not a very patient person, are you?" She asked with a laugh.

"I guess not." He said sheepishly.

"Neither am I." Riley said. Lucas kissed her again.

My parents are here this weekend." He said nervously.

"You must be so happy. You haven't seen them since you came to New York." Riley was excited for him.

"Yeah I am." He paused before he continued. "I told them about you." He said, to test the waters.

"You have?" Riley flashed that goofy smile of hers that drove him crazy.

"Yes. And they would really like to meet you." He said, almost apologetically.

"Meet me?" Riley asked. "Isn't it a little soon? We've only been on three dates."

"I know. I told them that but they don't know when they would come again and they don't want to miss out on the opportunity to meet you."

"Wow." Riley said with shock written all over her face. "I don't know."

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable, I tried telling them it's too soon but they are so relentless. It doesn't have to be a big deal, right?" He pleaded.

Before Riley had a chance to answer, her phone rang.

"It's Maya, I have to take it." She said to Lucas and picked up her phone. "Hey, what's up?"

"You need to come over. Now! Josh was here and I am freaking out and need to talk to you." Maya said all in one breath.

"Josh came over to your house? What did he want?" Riley asked surprise.

"I'll tell you everything when you get here." Maya answered.

Maya was Riley's best friend. The person in this world she loved most. But even she had boundaries. Normally she would finish her date and then run straight to Maya. But now she had a situation of her own she needed to talk about.

"I'll be there in 15 minutes." Riley said and hung up.

"Is everything okay?" Lucas asked.

 _No, I'm not ready to meet your parents,_ Riley thought. "Yeah, but Maya needs me. I'm sorry to do this to you but it's important."

Lucas smiled. "I understand. You have to go."

"I do. I'll call you and I'll make it up to you." She gave him a quick kiss and run off.

"What about all of the picnic stuff?" Lucas yelled behind her. She brought all the food and the blanket in a little basket her grandma gave her mother as a present. Her mom would kill her if she lost it.

"You can return it to me on our next date." She said and turned around in the direction of Maya's house.

XXXXXX

"We've known each other for a week and a half and he wants me to meet his parents?" Riley complained to her best friend.

"He forgot to tell me? What does that mean?" Maya was concentrated on her own problem.

"This is moving way to fast. I'm not ready for this." Riley said.

"This is not moving fast enough. Do you think I have a shot?" Maya said.

The girls were laying on the floor of Maya's bedroom, with their heads next to each other and their feet facing the opposite direction of each other. Both of them discussed their own problem.

"Are you insane? He has a girlfriend." Riley said to her best friend.

"Which he forgot about when he was with me. And it's not like they are married. People break up all the time." Maya explained.

"Oh peaches, you are insane." Riley assured her.

"Why is that so crazy? He loves spending time with me, we are close and I never told him how I felt. I never showed him that he has an option. He has a chance with me." Maya almost screamed.

"He is in love with someone else Maya. He is not with this girl as a replacement until you come clean about how you feel. He has real feelings for this girl." Riley tried to explain.

"Why are you being like this? I never fought for anything. You are always trying to get me to care about something and I finally do. I want to fight for him. I want to fight for us." Maya said, sitting straight up.

"I just don't want to see you get hurt." Riley joined in the same position.

"Then help me out." Maya pleaded.

"Fine. I got your back. Even if I think this is going to come and bite us in the ass one day." Riley said, supportive as always.

"What about you and Lucas's parents?" Maya brought the conversation back to Riley.

"I don't know what to do." Riley laid back on the ground. Maya joined her.

"Why is it such a big deal?" Maya asked.

"It's too soon." Riley explained.

"Your parents met Charlie on your first date when he came to pick you up."

"That was different."

"Why?" Maya asked.

"Because it was Charlie." Riley said. "They knew him before then. I knew him before then. It was easy with him. It already felt like we were dating before we even dated. And with Lucas…I barely know him. And everything is moving too fast. We haven't even had the 'are we exclusive talk' yet. "

"You love fast. You live there. When you are in love you give it all. That's who you are." Maya said and turned to her friend. "I think you're just scared."

Riley scoffed. "That's ridiculous. Scared of what?"

"Of getting hurt." Maya said. Riley swallowed a big lump and said nothing.

"You loved Charlie and he hurt you. Now you're scared that you're getting in too deep with Lucas and that he will hurt you." Maya said observantly.

"I don't want to be." Riley said after a short pause.

"I know. So what are you going to do?" Maya asked in a soft voice.

"What do you think I should do?" Riley looked for an advice.

"I think you should be honest with him and tell him it's too soon, maybe slow it down a bit. Because I know you, you'll freak out and push him away even if you really don't want to do that." Maya said.

"And what are you going to do with Josh?" Riley wondered.

"I don't know. Got any ideas?"

"You should hang out with him. Alone. And maybe flirt a little." Riley advised.

"I am not good at flirting." Maya said.

"You are gorgeous and naturally witty, everything you say comes out as flirty." Riley said as a fact.

"Look at us. You are scared of moving faster and I am fighting for Josh. Who would have thought?" Maya said, surprised.

"And all because of some boys." Riley added.

XXXXXX

Maya was pacing nervously in her room. She was thinking over her plan one more time. She was about to call Josh and she was worried. Is she really going to do this? Is she going to chase after Josh? Possible steal him away from another girl?

No. that's not who Maya is. You are either with her because you want to be or you are not there at all. She was never settling. Not for anyone. And definitely not for a guy. Especially one that already has a girlfriend.

But what if Josh is the one? What if he likes her but she never gave him any signs? What if... What if… What if.

That's all she had. Just a bunch of what ifs. Maybe they can just be friends. He seemed like he really wanted to hang out. It can stay platonic. They can watch movies and tell jokes or talk about other guys and Amanda.

Never mind the burning desire she felt every time he stood by her side or touched her. She is not an animal. She can control herself.

She sat on the edge of her bed, hands still shaking as she typed a text meant for Josh.

She texted: "Out of my solitude. Want to hang?"

She pressed sent and her heart started beating faster. This is not how you feel when you text a platonic friend. She checked her phone to make sure she texted the right person. She was waiting for a response for what felt like ages. In reality it was less than two minutes.

Finally, her phone rang and she smiled.

He wrote: "For you, I'll always have time."


	6. The first bad day

Riley held her phone in her hands. She dialed Lucas's number, ready to take Maya's advice and tell him the truth. She wasn't ready. Whether it be fear or common sense, she wasn't sure.

Lucas answered after two rings.

"Hey beautiful." He exclaimed over the phone.

"Hey, handsome." Riley responded. "So I have to tell you something."

"I know. Look. I get it. It's too soon and you seemed uncomfortable with the idea and I never want to make you feel that way. So let's just forget about the whole thing and let me take you out tomorrow. What do you say?" Lucas said what she was thinking before she ever got the chance.

"No, it's not like that at all. I wasn't uncomfortable." Riley said. She felt bad about not wanting to meet his parents yet when he was so nice and understanding.

"Riley, you bolted as soon as I asked you." Lucas reminded her.

"I had a friend emergency. I had to leave." She explained.

"Riles, it's fine. Really. It's not that big of a deal. I like you. And I don't want to mess this up. I don't want to push you. You don't have to do anything you don't want to. All that matters is that the two of us and what we want together." He said exactly what Riley needed to hear.

Lucas lifted the pressure off of her and she didn't want to let him down.

"No, I want to meet your parents. Really. That's why I was calling. So we can make a plan." She said.

"Really? Are you sure? Because we really don't have to."

"Of course. It's fine. Plus, it's only lunch, what's the worst that can happen?" Riley asked, not hypothetically at all.

"Well, okay then. Is Sunday okay for you?" He asked giddy.

"Sunday is great." Riley responded.

"Okay, I'll let my parents know." He said. "And are we still on for tomorrow night. I mean I have to return the picnic basket to it's proper owner."

Riley smiled widely.

"My parents are out of town tomorrow. Why don't you come over for a movie in the evening?" She said.

"Okay. See you then."

"Bye."

Riley never had a chance to think about how in the span of five minutes she went from freaking out about meeting the parents to openly accepting the invitation for it, because Maya burst through the front door into her living room the second she hung up on Lucas.

"I did it!" Maya announced loudly. "I texted him, he texted back. We are watching a movie here tomorrow night."

"Here? No." Riley said.

"Here, yes." Maya confirmed.

"No, not here. Because I just talked to Lucas and we are watching a movie here tomorrow." Riley said.

"I call dibs." Maya exclaimed.

"You can't call dibs, it's my house."

"That's a fair point." Maya agreed.

"Just do it at your house." Riley offered.

"I guess. But I hate it there." Maya said.

"It's a nice house." Riley said.

"Whatever. Did you talked to Lucas about his parents?" Maya changed the subject.

"I did." Riley said

"And?" Her best friend wondered.

"We're meeting them for lunch this Sunday." Riley said and quickly started walking away from Maya.

"Oh, Riles." Maya said and followed her best friend's footsteps. "What happened?"

"I don't know." Riley said and set on the bay window in her living room. "I called him to say no and then before I even said a word he said it's fine and he doesn't want to push me and he saw how freaked out I was and that's okay."

"And instead of taking that opening, you…" Maya encouraged her to continue her story.

"I said none of it is true and that I would like to meet his parents."

"Are you still freaked out?" Maya asked.

"I just like that he knows what I want without me having to tell him." Riley said with a big smile.

"That's nice." Maya agreed.

"Yeah, it is. And I think this means a lot to him." Riles said. "But I'm still scared he is going to hurt me. And I don't think I could get over it this time."

"If you keep worrying about what will happened if it ends, you want be able to enjoy now that it works. Don't sabotage yourself. Don't worry and don't be guarded, just… be happy." Maya advised her.

"When did you get so emotionally intelligent?" Riley teased her.

"I guess binge watching Gilmore Girls and Sex and the City finally paid off." Maya joked.

"Thanks for always being there when I need you. " Riley said.

"Anytime peaches." Maya responded.

XXXXXX

Maya made sure her mother works the night shift that day. She cleaned the whole house and laid out a couple of movies as options for tonight's viewing. She ordered a large pizza and nervously paced her living room, awaiting Josh. She didn't know why she was so nervous. She used to spend time with Josh like this all the time. So why did this time make her feel like her heart was about to jump out of her chest?

The doorbell finally rang and she had to remind herself how to breathe.

She opened the door. Josh smiled at her and the second she laid her eyes on him she felt calm. He always made her feel calm.

"Hey." Josh said with a large grin and hugged her. A little smile escaped Maya as she greeted him back.

"I ordered pizza." She said.

"Our favorite movie snack. Nice." He said, melting her heart with the word 'our'. "Did you remember to ask for extra olives?"

Maya and Josh both loved olives and they always fought over them.

"We've eaten enough of these together for me to know the procedure. Don't insult me." Maya said.

"I got us a movie." He raised the DVD he held in his hand so Maya could see it.

"Rent? I love that movie." Maya exclaimed. She loved musicals. Especially this one.

"But we've both seen it a million times." She said.

"I know." Josh said. "Which is why we can sing all the parts ourselves."

"I've never loved you as much as I love you now." Maya said. She didn't mean it in that way. In the real way. That didn't stop her from blushing.

"I thought you might say something like that." Josh said, still oblivious to how she felt about him.

"It's the version with 'Goodbye love' in it, right?" Maya checked.

"Do you think I'd be able to show my face here if it wasn't?" Josh said.

They sat down and stared in excitement as the already well known first words that they screamed in unison appeared: "Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear…"

XXXXXX

"I brought popcorn, cookie dough ice cream and sodas." Lucas announced as he entered the Matthew's home.

"And he cooks too." Riley joked as she greeted him with a kiss.

"I am the perfect human specimen." He laughed.

"My prince charming." Riley added. "As long as you bring food over, we'll have our happily ever after."

They sat on the couch and Riley started the movie.

"If I knew New York women were so easy to please, I would have moved here years ago." Lucas joked.

"That kind of talk will get you kicked out of this easy- to- please-New- Yorker's home." Riley said.

"My deepest apologies my fair lady." He said and kissed her cheek. "So what are we watching?"

"Pulp fiction." Riley said.

"My favorite." Lucas said and they both laughed, remembering the talk they had the first night they met.

XXXXXX

"I love this song." Maya said as 'Halloween' ended.

"You love every song." Josh chuckled.

"Yes but I still feel it's important to point it out after every song." Maya said.

"It's totally not annoying." Josh said laughing.

They got interrupted by a loud knock on the door. The pizza guy already came by so Maya didn't know who it could be.

"Is it your mom?" Josh asked.

"No, she's at work until 6 a.m." Maya answered. It was almost near midnight and she wasn't expecting anyone.

"Katy! Open up!" A loud man screamed on the other side of the door. Maya's insides froze as she recognized the voice.

"Is that your father?" Josh asked surprised.

Kermit started banging harder on the door. "OPEN UP, I KNOW YOU'RE IN HERE!" He screamed even harder.

"YOU HAVE TO LEAVE!" Maya managed to scream. She was still unable to move, frozen from shock.

Josh stood next to her and squeezed her hand tightly. He knew how scared she was in that moment. He was the only one who knew what happened the last time Maya saw her father. He was there. Josh was at her place, watching a movie just like now when her father suddenly came home from drinking too much again, screaming at Maya how big of an embarrassment she was and how he never wanted her. Screaming how she ruined his life and how miserable he was because of her. Katy ran into the living room from the kitchen when she heard the commotion and tried to stop Kermit but instead of listening he hit her like he always did when he got sick of her. Then he went over to Maya and started hitting her too. In her chest and legs. It all happened so fast. Josh moved in as quickly as he could to push him away from her but he was quite smaller then Kermit. He managed to push him away somehow and even got in a few good punches before Kermit started to fight back. Luckily, one of the neighbors heard the noise and called the police. They arrested him and took Maya, Katy and Josh to the hospital. It wasn't the first time her father laid a hand on her, but it was the first time someone witnessed which made it so much more painful. Josh stayed in the hospital with her all night and in the morning he promised he would not say anything about it to Riley.

Maya hasn't seen her father since. And now he stood in front of her doors.

"I came to see your mother and I AM NOT LEAVING UNTIL SHE OPENS THE DOOR!" Maya could tell he has been drinking. His speech was getting blurry and he was only this angry when he had one too many.

"There is nothing you need to tell her. She is done with you. We both are. Now leave before I call the cops." Maya warned.

"THIS IS MY HOUSE! AND SHE IS MY WIFE! OPEN THESE GODDAMN DOORS!" Kermit yelled and banged harder on the door.

Josh called 911, never letting go of Maya's hand.

"NOTHING HERE BELONGS TO! MY MOTHER DIVORCED YOUR SORRY ASS! WE HAVE A RESTRAINING ORDER, YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE HERE! LEAVE, THE COPS ARE ON THEIR WAY!" Maya yelled at the doors.

"I AM YOUR FATHER! YOU WILL SHOW ME SOME RESPECT!" Kermit yelled.

"YOU STOPED BEING MY FATHER THE SECOND YOU RAISED YOUR HAND ON ME AND YOU DIDN'T EARN MY RESPECT! NOW LEVE!" Josh could see how scared she was. He put his arms around her shoulders and pressed her against his chest into a tight hug. "He can't hurt you now." He whispered into her ear. "You're safe. You're going to be okay. I'm here."

But Kermit was relentless. He kept banging on the door and calling for Katy. He screamed profanities at Maya when she refused to answer.

It brought all of those ugly memories she tried so hard to burry deep inside. Everything she refused to deal with came rushing back and she felt like a little girl again. Scared little girl she desperately tried to get rid of.

She worked so hard to get over the harsh words her father had told her over the years. The bruises were painful but eventually they faded. But those words of hatred and screams of distain were embedded deep into her brain, into who she was. It's hard to love yourself and let others love you, when your own father never did and he never let you forget it.

"He's going to break down the doors." Maya said.

"No he's not." Josh assured her. "He won't get to you. The police will be here any second. They'll put him in jail again and he'll never come anywhere near you again."

Kermit kept banging and yelling and swearing for another seven minutes before police finally arrived. Maya was sure it was seven minutes because she counted every second of it. Finally they heard someone yell: "POLICE! Step away from the door!" Fallowed by a loud thump and a few seconds later someone gently knocked on the door.

"My name is Officer Higgins, I am with the NYPD. The suspect is apprehended and it's safe to come out now." The voice said.

Maya and Josh moved towards the door in unison.

Maya unlocked the door and Officer Higgins stood on the other side.

"Are you two okay? Is there someone we could call?" He asked.

"No. It's fine. Just as long as he's not here, we'll be fine." Maya answered.

"Alright. I have to take statements from both of you. Just a couple of questions, it won't take too long." The Officer said.

Maya and Josh answered all the question he had for them. They told him exactly what happened and about the history of violence Kermit had. It lasted about twenty minutes. Then the cop left and Maya and Josh were once again alone.

They sat on the couch, not speaking for a while. Josh spoke first.

"Are you okay?"

Maya nodded.

"You don't have to be." He said. Maya turned to look at him.

"It's just… I thought it was over. I thought I was done with him. But he came back and everything he said… everything he always says… It's hard sometimes not to believe it." She said.

"Hey, don't ever say that. I am sorry he was never a good father but he doesn't get to do this to you. You are smart and beautiful and kind and funny and talented and he is a mess who never cared. Nothing he ever said to you or about you is true. You have to know that." Josh said. It broke his heart to see her like that.

"Could you stay tonight?" Maya asked without thinking. She just needed him so bad. She wanted to fall asleep in his arms while he tells her everything is going to be fine. She wanted him close so badly. She was scared to sleep alone.

Then she looked into his eyes and regretted asking. What a dumb idea.

"I'm sorry. You don't have to. That was stupid of me to ask." She said quickly.

"No. I'll stay. I don't want you to be alone tonight." Josh said.

"No, you should go. I'll be fine." She insisted.

"Maya…"

"I'm sorry I asked. I'll be fine. I promise. You should go." She said again. "I'll call you tomorrow?" She added when she saw he wasn't keen on leaving her.

"Promise?" He asked.

"Promise." She agreed.

Sending Josh away was the right thing to do, she knew that but she still didn't want to be alone, so she grabbed her phone and dialed the only number she knew by heart.

"Hey Riles, it's me. Can you come over?"


	7. The first fight

**A/N: Hey guys, it's been way too long and I am so sorry for that. Thank you all for your patience and kind words you posted on the previous chapters. I love and appreciate all of you. I am sorry I kept you waiting for so long. I am trying to do better. To those of you who asked me about my other, also unfinished story, I will come back to that one too, but I can't give you an exact time when. I hope you don't hate me that much and I really hope you enjoy this next chapter. I love reading your comments and thoughts and I hope I hear more from you guys so if you like it or hate it let me know.**

Riley came over as quickly as she could. Lucas left her place ten minutes before Maya called. Maya didn't tell her friend what happened over the phone. She waited until she came over. Riley knew Maya's father drank and she knew he hit Maya a couple of times when she was younger but Maya never wanted to talk about it so Riley never pushed. She didn't knew the full extent of it. Until tonight. Maya finally told her everything.

The girls laid on Maya's bed facing each other. Maya talked, Riley listened. When Maya told her everything, including what happened tonight, Riley asked: "Do you want to talk about your father or Josh first?"

"Let's get over the Josh thing first." Maya said.

"I don't understand… You wanted him to stay. So why did you tell him to leave?" Riley asked.

"Because he would've stayed." Maya answered.

"I'm not following."

"I asked him to stay and he looked at me with those puppy dog eyes, the way you look at a little stray, lost in the rain and he would've stayed. Because he's a nice guy and I asked him and he's my friend but I don't want him to stay like that. It felt dirty and cheap somehow. I want him to stay not just because he's a nice guy. Not just because he has to, but because it's the only place he wants to be. " Maya said.

"I get it." Riley told her.

"And also…" Maya started sheepishly. "He knew. He was there the last time I saw my father. We were watching a movie and Kermit lost it and hit me and Josh tried to stop him but he ended up hurt too. And we didn't hang out for a year after that. I avoided him because I liked him but also… he saw me at my worst. He was there and he heard and saw everything and I was so embarrassed. I mean I didn't even tell you about it. I don't want that to be the first thing he thinks of when he thinks of me." Maya said and covered her face with both her hands.

"Hey, you have nothing to be embarrassed about." Riley said and took Maya's hands into her own. "You are so amazing. The only thing wrong with you is your father. And he can't get to you now. For every bad thing he said to you, I am going to tell you the truth. You are smart and beautiful. You are crazy talented. You bring joy to people. You take care of me. "

"We take care of each other." Maya corrected her. "Thanks for being here."

"Anytime, peaches." Riley assured her. "Your dad sucks. He was never here for you. He was never sober. He is a miserable, disgusting excuse for existence and he doesn't know you. Nothing he ever said or did to you was because of you. None of it is your fault. It's all on him. Everything he ever did was about him and him hating himself. He was never good at anything and he was a coward. He took the easy way out where he doesn't have to deal with anything. The worst thing is that he dragged your mom and you down with him. But your mom is strong and fierce and she got out. She is fighting for you now. You can't let everything bad he ever did scream louder than anything good she ever did. You have to promise me you won't let him drag you down with him anymore."

Maya was never more grateful for a friend like Riley Matthews. "I promise."

"Good. I am so proud of you." Riley said.

"Thanks, Riles. That means a lot."

"And Josh just wants to be there for you. Don't push him away again."

"I don't know how to do this. I want him in my life but it's so scary letting someone in." Maya said.

"It's always going to be scary. You think that if you do it enough times, you'll get better at it, and that may be true but trusting someone is always going to be hard. Opening up to someone, showing them all of your wounds and trusting them that they will help you heal them, not make them deeper. You are trusting someone with your hart. You will eventually tell them your darkest secret and they will see you for who you really are and you have to trust them that they won't just run away the first time you cry instead of laugh. And it's paralyzing to think you can be honest with someone and fall in love with them only so one day, they could reject you for being who you are. And that thought will always be in the back of your mind. You will always fear that one day he'll wake up before you and look at your while you're still sleeping and he'll realize he doesn't love you anymore. I guess at the end of the day the only thing you have to ask yourself is if it is all worth it." Riley said.

"Is that how you feel about Lucas?" Maya asked.

"I guess… But not all the time. Mostly when I am alone but when we are together I feel safe. So safe. Like nothing bad can ever happen. But then that scares me even more because if I start to depend on that it will only be worse when I lose him." Riley said honestly.

"I get that feeling too. Josh always makes me calm." Maya added.

"It's a great feeling." Riley agreed.

"I am happy you are not letting that fear get between you and Lucas. He is good for you. You deserve good." Maya said.

"You do too, you know that, right?" Riley reminded her.

Maya let out a little smile. "I am learning."

Both girls closed their eyes and quickly fell asleep, still holding hands.

Maya woke up first. Her phone rang and pulled her out of sleep. She put the phone to her ear, still too sleepy to check who the caller was.

"Yes." She growled in her morning voice.

"It's Josh… did I wake you?" The voice on the other end of the phone said.

"Why are you calling so early?" She asked.

"It's 1 p.m." He said. "It's way past early."

"You don't need to check up on me." Maya tried to convince him. "I told you I was fine."

"I just wanted to make sure you're okay." He said.

"Of course I am." Maya said. "But thank you for calling to check."

"I am here if you want to talk." He reminded her. "Always."

Maya smiled and blushed, grateful Josh couldn't see any of it. "I know." She said. "I've always known that."

"You know, the last time this happened, we didn't talk for a while and I don't want that to happen again." He said.

"Good, because it won't." She said. "I don't think I ever thanked you. For last night and for the first night, so thank you. Thank you for being there."

"There's nothing to thank me for. I'm just glad you weren't alone." He said. "So do you want to meet up today or tomorrow?"

"Today is a Riley and Maya kind of day, but we can do something tomorrow." She agreed.

"Great." Josh said with glee. "We can go get coffee."

"Sounds like a plan."

Maya hung up and turned to see Riley awake.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" She said to her best friend.

"Kind of." She said honestly. "But we over slept anyways. We have a lot to do today."

"It's Saturday. All we have to do today is stay in bed and swap sad stories." Maya disagreed and laid back in the bed.

"I am meeting Lucas's parents tomorrow. I have to prepare." Riley said panicking.

"Come on Riles. You are perfect in every way. They're going to love you." Maya assured her.

"What if they don't?" Riley asked worried. "He cares about their opinion a lot. What if they hate me and he just says you're right, I can do better?"

"Objection!" Maya exclaimed as determent as she ever was. "No one can do better that Riley Matthews, you hear me? And that boy adores you. You're going to charm the pants off of his parents. You're going to out-charm their southern charm."

"I am going to charm the hell out of them but only if I prepare." Riley was determent. "And you're going to help me." She pulled Maya by her hands into a sitting position. "I asked Lucas to write down some information about his parents for me and now I have to remember all of them. Please help me."

"I love you peaches but you are a lot of work." Maya said with a smile. "Fine." She finally agreed. "But only if I can do it in bed."

"I'll allow it." Riley said.

They spent the next three hours going over every information Riley had about Lucas's parents.

"You know they're not going to quiz you on this, right?" Maya remarked a couple of times. But Riley would just wave it off and keep reading. Finally, Maya convinced her friend to take a break.

"What am I going to wear?" Riley asked, not being able to let it go.

"Where are you meeting them?" Maya asked, knowing well she won't be able to change the subject.

"Some fancy Italian place. I don't remember the name." Riley said.

"How can you not remember the name? His parents will think you're irresponsible." Maya teased her.

"Oh god, you're right. How could I have forgotten?" Riley started to panic.

"Relax, I was just kidding." Maya calmed her down. "You are taking this too seriously. You need to stop spiraling."

"I am not spiraling." Riley protested.

"You are totally spiraling." Maya said and took her hand. "Let's just take a break, lay down and try to think about something else."

"Okay." Riley agreed and laid her head on a pillow.

"What about that blue dress I wore to your birthday party last year? I look good in that." Riley asked as she jumped out of her bed and rushed to her closet.

"You love her." Maya reminded herself. "You love her. She's crazy but you love her."

XXX

Riley was very anxious. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this nervous. Maybe when she was taking her drivers test but even that was nothing compared to this. Her hand was sweating while Lucas held onto it. Her heart was beating so loudly she could barely hear Lucas's voice as he was trying to calm her down.

"It's going to be fine." He said. "They're going to love you as much as I… I mean they're going to like you a lot… as much as I like you." He quickly corrected himself. Riley was too much in her own head to notice the little slip up.

"What if they don't?" She asked with fear. "Are you going to break up with me? If you do just give me a little heads up, maybe a code word. Like cucumber. Yeah, yell cucumber and I'll know what's up. Maybe if you do it loudly enough, I'll get a free dessert out of it. " Lucas chuckled. He put both of his hands on each of her cheeks.

"Hey, breathe, okay. Everything is fine. They are going to love you. Because they'll be crazy not to." He said and kissed her softly. Riley felt a little better.

"Okay." She responded with a whisper. "I'm ready." They walked in to the restaurant holding hands. They came in a little early because Riley didn't want for his parent's to wait for them. Riley took a moment to look around. The interior was decorated in white and gold, the restaurant manager took them to the table they reserved, on the balcony over looking the whole city. Waiters were dressed in white shirts and black bow ties. Riley couldn't take her eyes off of the glass chandelier that covered almost half the ceiling.

"This is a fancy place." She noted.

"Yeah it is." Lucas responded, like he eats at fancy restaurants every day.

"Like super nice. Like very expensive nice. Do your parents know that?"

"They said they wanted to go to the nicest restaurant in New York city." Lucas responded. "Don't worry about it, they'll pay for everything."

"But I feel bad. I don't want them to feel like they have to take us to a place like this. I have never been to a restaurant this nice. This is not my scene. I would be fine with a taco from a street vendor. That is so my scene. Do they even have tacos here?" Riley said.

Lucas laughed and kissed her. "That's what I like about you. You know what really matters in life." He paused for a second. "Okay, there is something I need to tell you. I've been putting it off because I wanted to know you like me for me and not for what I have. Because I like you a lot and I needed this to be for real because I never felt like this before."

"Oh god, please don't propose. I'm not ready for that. It's way too soon." Riley rushed to say.

"No, no. I'm not proposing." He quickly said.

"Good." Riley let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm rich." He said.

"What?" Riley said with a laugh.

"Well, my parents are. And that kind of means I am too by default."

"Are you joking? Because making this joke minutes before your parents walk in is kind of mean." Riley said.

"It's not a joke." Lucas promised. "My parents own a vineyard. A couple of them actually. And they make wine. Like ridiculously expensive wine. You know that brand 'stallion'? That's theirs."

"What?" Riley exclaimed. "That's a 1000$ per bottle wine." She tried to wrap her head around it. "Are you kidding me? Please tell me this is a joke. I promise I won't be mad."

"It's not a joke, babe." Lucas said. "I'm sorry. In hindsight I probably should have told you sooner but it doesn't change anything. You are still the greatest person I know. And my parents are going to see that. And if they love me that will be the only thing that matters. Because it is the only thing that matters." He assured her.

"I can't breathe." She panicked. "I can't even remember my name. What are my hobbies? Do I even have any? Oh god, I even forgot what kind of weather we are having."

"Riles, breathe. Just breathe." Lucas tried to calm her down. He cupped her left cheek with his hand and rubbed her back with his right hand.

"You are freaking out and I promise you there is nothing to fear, okay? I am here and I am not going anywhere. I got you. I have your back and nothing bad is going to happen." Riley felt a little calmer.  
"You lied to me." She said.

"I'm really sorry. I didn't want to deceive you but I had my heart broken before. Too many times. This money has only been a curse for me. My parents use it to try to control me, girls are only interested in me because of it and I just wanted you to get to know me first and like me for me. And I'm hoping that when my parents meet you and spend time with you, they'll see how good I have it here and how I don't need their money." He explained.

"Is there anything else you didn't tell me?" Riley asked.

"I am not at NYU on a scholarship. That I lied about, but I did get in on my own and they did offer me one. I just thought it wouldn't be fair for me to take it since there was someone out there who couldn't fall back on their parents' money if things didn't work out. Buy I pay for it on my own. I am working so I can pay it off on my own." He explained. "Everything else I told you was true."

"Okay." Riley said after a minute of thinking it over. "But don't you ever lie to me again. Or withhold the truth in case it doesn't come up."

"I promise." Lucas said with a sigh of a relief. He kissed her and she kissed him back.

"Khm khm." They got interrupted by the sound of someone clearing out their throat. They both quickly faced two figures who stood above them. Lucas's parents. They both looked very tall and elegant. Mr. Friar wore an Armani suit and Mrs. Friar wore a Dolce & Gabbana dress that hasn't even hit the stores yet because it was from the next season's collection. She even wore a pearl necklace.

"I hope we're not interrupting." Lucas's dad said.

Mr. Friar's voice sounded just like Lucas's if Lucas were to smoke for the next 20 years of his life. As soon as he spoke Riley quickly jumped to her feet.

"Mr. and Ms. Friar, it's so lovely to finally meet you."

Lucas stood up too. "Mom, dad this is Riley, my girlfriend. Riles, these are my parents."

They all shook hands. Lucas's parents sat down across from their son and his girlfriend. Riley's mouth went completely dry and she could hear her heartbeat in her throat. She just hoped she wouldn't throw up.

"So Riley, our son tells us a lot about your character but not much about your situation. Tell us about your parents? What do they do?" Mr. Friar asked with a fake polite smile.

"Really dad? That is the first thing you want to know?" Lucas shook his head in disagreement. "Unbelievable. You don't have to answer that Riles."

"No, I don't mind." Riley said with a smile, hers incapable of being anything but sincere. "My mom is a lawyer and my dad is a teacher."

"Oh, a noble profession. What college does he teach at?" Mr. Friar inquired.

"No, actually he teaches in high school. My high school."

"Oh." Both of Lucas's parents let out a disappointing sigh. Riley knew they thought her father's position inappropriate for someone whose daughter is dating their son, but she refused to be ashamed of her father.

„Yes. And he is very good at what he does. He's the best there is. He taught me everything I know about life." She shot back with pride.

"And your mother? A lawyer? Does she have any plans to move forward and become a judge?" Ms. Friar asked. "Supreme court, perhaps."

"She's still too young for that kind of position. And she is very happy as a partner at her current firm." Riley answered.

"Young?" Mr. Friar was caught by surprise. "How old was she when she had you?"

"She was 20." Riley answered.

"A bit young." Wide eyed Mr. Friar let out under his breath, but still loud enough to be heard.

"Are you happy with your answers? Can we move on from this witch hunt?" Lucas asked angrily.

"We are just trying to get to know your little friend." Lucas's mother said, emphasizing the last two words. Riley could tell Lucas was getting angrier with every word. She squeezed his hand as a sign of support. He took a deep breath and continued, a bit calmer.

"My girlfriend, mother. She's my girlfriend and you are being very rude to her." He said.

"That was certainly not our attention, dear." His mother responded. "I'm sure Rowan doesn't share your observation."

"It's Riley actually." Riley said. "And I'm sure your intentions are not the same as what comes across. Although this is definitely starting to have a Jane Austin vibe to it. Riley answered as politely as she could. "Now if we can move on maybe we can get to know each other a little bit better."

"Certainly." Mr. Friar confirmed. "We wouldn't want the poor girl to feel attacked."

"Emphasis on the poor." Riley whispered to herself.

"What was that my dear?" Ms. Friar asked.

"Um, should we order drinks?" Riley said out loud.

"Excellent idea." Mr. Friar said. "Look honey, they sell our wine here. We should order some."

"I'll stick with apple cider." Riley sheepishly said.

"Oh, that's right dear, you're still in high school." Mr. Friar responded.

Riley wasn't sure how much of this she could take. She knew Maya would give a grand speech and walk out but Riley couldn't do that, to Lucas or to herself. She was determent to stick it out, no matter what. On the bright side, she thought, she never had to see them again. The dinner went on to last forever in Riley's mind. They ordered the drinks and the food, commented on everything from weather to the size of Riley's apartment. Lucas's parents kept asking questions, placing small, carefully chosen insults along the way. Lucas stood up for Riley every single time, without exception, but Riley couldn't help but feel attacked and vulnerable. And soon enough Lucas's hand in hers didn't feel as warm and pleasant and she let go of it. Lucas was too upset with his parents to notice. It was clear to Riley that although Lucas was determent to defend Riley he was even more determent to avoid a real fight with his parents. And even though Riley was only eighteen and she'd only known Lucas for a short period of time, she began to wonder if this is how it will always be? She imagined their wedding day and Mrs. Friar's dismissing demeanor at the sight of her wedding dress. She imagined the birth of their child and his parents' refusal to even be there. She saw Lucas getting more and more depressing over his strained relationship with his own parents. She saw him regretting his decision to stand by her and even blaming her for it. They were in the middle of dessert when Riley couldn't take it anymore.

His mother said: "Surely you both must know that this is not the best pairing for either of you. You need someone who better understands your lifestyle and who you have more in common with."

"Mother…" Lucas started but Riley was faster. She stood up slowly, gently placed her napkin on her plate and said: "I spent this entire night listening to you insulting my parents and every other aspect of my life, including my education and the house I grew up in, that you've never even seen, by the way. And my parents are the two most wonderful people I know. They met when they were just kids and they loved each other ever since and they got married at eighteen which is why they had me at twenty. And thank god they'll never get to meet you because you are so beneath them. And I like your son. Even though I didn't want to be here because I thought it was too soon, I did, because I knew it would make him happy. And I don't like you. and not because of stupid and superficial reasons like your bank account but because I truly don't think you are very nice people and how you raised Lucas to be the wonderful man he is, I have no clue. And he deserves better that you and he deserves better than what I'm about to do." She stopped for a brief second to turn and look at Lucas.

"I am so sorry I'm doing this to you. You are sweet for standing up for me but I can't do this and I hope you don't hate me for my shortcomings. I have to go now and I think it would probably be best if we don't see each other for a while." She turned to his parents again. "So congratulation, you win."

She walked out, her heart beating even louder than before. Her eyes were burning from the tears that were starting to form. As soon as she walked out and turned the corner she heard a pair of footsteps fast approaching.

"Riley, wait, please." Lucas said a few steps behind her. He quickly caught up to her and placed his hand on her forearm as a silent plea to stop and hear him out.

"I'm so sorry Riles. Their opinion doesn't even matter. I mean, they are my parents and I know they want what they think is the best for me but they're wrong about you. You are what's best for me."

"Cucumber." Riley said quietly. Lucas was puzzled for a second and then he remembered their conversation outside the restaurant.

"Oh god Riles, no. Please don't do this."

"Please don't make this any harder. Look. I wish I was stronger, I wish I could fight for you, but your parents are right. Everything they said is going to come true. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but some day down the line and it's better like this. I don't think I can handle it in a few months or a few years. It's better if we do it now, before it gets too serious."

"But I love you. It's serious for me now." Lucas protested.

"No it's not. It can't be. You need to find someone who is right for you. And that's not me." Riley said. She could feel her tears coming and she wanted to go before he could see her cry. "I need you to let me go now."

"Riles, please…" He started, but she wouldn't listen.

"No. I spent the whole night listening and I think I heard enough. We won't work out. Your mom might be mean but she is right. You lied to me. You cornered me tonight and i did not like that. That is not the kind of relationship I want to have. And I can't have your parents hanging over our heads for the rest of my life." Riley said.

"You lied to me too." Lucas said. Riley looked at him puzzled. "You said in there that you didn't want to come tonight. I asked you more than once. I told you that you didn't have to do it and you said it was fine."

Riley nodded and waited. She knew that the second she opened her mouth to say something she would start to cry.

"Well then…" She started, her voice shaking, her eyes watery. "I guess we have one more reason to end it." She turned around and walked away but this time, Lucas didn't follow her.


	8. The first disappointment

Maya Hart was nervous. Very nervous. The type of nervous she only feels when she thinks about Josh. She made plans to meet Josh for coffee that day while Riley was meeting Lucas's parents for the first time, and as much as she hated helping her prep, she did welcome the distraction because the more time she spent helping Riley memorize all the colors Mrs. Friar would never be caught dead wearing, the less time she had to obsess over Josh.

She stood on the corner of fifth and Clement Street, next to a cozy little coffee shop both Maya and Josh liked. You could order any of their two hundred flavor combinations to go with your coffee addiction. Maya discovered it one day with Riley but Riley never liked coffee, so Maya showed this place to one other person she knew with the caffeine addiction as severe as hers. Josh.

She saw him walking towards her. He noticed her and waved. Maya felt like he moved in slow motion. His smile started to widen and his hair moved in the wind like he was in a shampoo commercial. She almost felt dizzy.

He hugged her when he approached and the second his arms wrapped around her, she didn't feel nervous anymore. They walked in and placed their order.

"So should we try some weird combination or should we stick with what we know?" Josh asked as they looked at the menu.

"Well I always liked a guy who lived dangerously." Maya said. She never had to try hard around Josh. Everything she said around him came naturally. Josh smiled.

"Then I'll have every flavor on the menu." He responded. That had to be flirting, Maya thought. He must know what he is doing.

Maya fluctuated between the thought of his girlfriend and the thought of that cheeky smile he had on right now. She realized at that moment that if he asked her or kissed her, all her morals would go right out the window. The thought of how much she wanted him and what she was ready to give up for him scared her. She knew this wasn't just a crush, it wasn't temporary. She loved him. She was sure of it. She loved him when he smiled at her, she loved him when he ordered their coffees and tipped the waitress, she loved him when he drank his coffee and had a whip cream mustache on his upper lip and she loved him when he made her feel infinite and scar free.

"So how is Riley doing?" He asked.

"You should have seen her yesterday. She was so close to losing her mind. We went over that list so many times that even I know everything about Lucas's parents at this point." They both laughed.

"Yeah, she gets that from her father." Lucas joked.

"Who knew you'd end up being the sane one in your family." Maya said.

"Why is that so surprising? I'm a delight." Josh answered in mock offence.

"You have your moments." Maya teased.

"Speaking of moments, do you want to talk about it?" He asked. Maya knew he meant that night with her father.

"I'm afraid that would ruin the delight of your company." She joked because talking about her father made her feel uncomfortable.

"Look, I know Riley is your person and she's the one you talk to about this stuff, I just really want you to know that you also have me to talk about it. I care about you and I don't want things to be weird between us. And I don't know, maybe because I was there both times and I couldn't protect you, I feel guilty because I couldn't stop him and if you hate me for it, I get it, I should have done more..."

"Josh stop." Maya interrupted him. She moved to a chair closer to him and put her hand on top of his. "You are my person too, you know? And how can you say you didn't protect me? You ended up in the hospital right next to me when it happened the first time because you tried to protect me. You held my hand the whole time the last time. You called the cops and you made me feel safe in the most unsafe moment of my life. Never feel guilty about that." He put his other hand on top of hers.

"I just never want you to go through that and especially not alone." He said. "I care about you so much. I can't even imagine what I would do if he hurt you again."

Her heart started to beat faster. How does he not know his words mean more to her then they do to him? How can he say all of that to her and then go home and love another girl? Maya was as confused as ever.

"Then it's a good thing he'll never get a chance." She simply said. They stood there looking at each other, still holding hands, wrapped in an intense moment, neither one of them speaking. Maya broke the silence first.

"Maybe now we can change the subject before this gets too dark."

"Yes. If you want to." He said. They let go of each other, but Maya stayed on the chair that was closer to him.

"I watched 'City lights' last night with Riley." Maya said.

"I love that movie." He said and Maya smiled.

"I knew you would. We always like the same movies."

"And you're the only one who lets me talk during the movies." He added.

"Well if you don't say what you think at the moment, you'll forget later and the discussion is part of the fun." She agreed.

"Try telling that to my roommate. He hits me with a pillow every time I try to say something."

That made Maya smile.

"Maybe I'll use that next time I want to shut you up." She thought kissing him would be another good way to stop him from talking but she didn't say that out loud.

"Why does everyone want to shut me up?" He asked while laughing.

"I don't know, what does Amanda think?" Maya asked. The mention of Amanda's name slightly changed the mood but Maya couldn't help it. They were definitely flirting and Maya knew what she was doing and she feels the way she feels about him and it made her feel guilty.

Josh's smile slightly dropped and his voice turned serious. "Amanda is not a big fan of movies. She is more into music."

"That's cool." Maya said.

It felt like dropping Amanda's name built an invisible wall between them, like a cold shower that drained out the flirtation and fun. A part of Maya hated herself for bringing her up, the other, more rational side would dare to do it again.

"Yeah." Josh said. "We are into a lot of the same bands."

"Does she know about your undying love for Taylor Swift?" Maya teased.

"Hey, I only told _you_ that and you promised to never use it against me." Josh squealed.

"But it's so much fun to watch you squirm." Maya laughed.

"You are mean." He laughed too.

"Just a little bit." She admitted, still laughing.

"But in all seriousness if _Taylor_ and _The Milk Carton Kids_ had a concert on the same night and you had the tickets to both, which one would you go to?" She asked him.

"That's a very cruel situation to put me in. I mean Taylor can make a spectacle but Kenneth sings directly to my soul." He answered seriously.

Maya couldn't help but crack a smile.

"You know I still can't listen to 'Michigan' by _The Milk Carton Kids_ without crying." Maya admitted.

"I played you that song over a year ago." Josh said.

"I know, it just hits me every time I put it on, it always feel like the first time I hear it."

"It's probably my favorite song of theirs." Josh agreed.

They talked for the next two hours without any breaks. They seamlessly moved from one subject to another like they always do. Maya always felt like she could be herself around Josh. He made her feel like no joke is too much and no comment is too personal. She could tell him anything, she could be honest with him in a way she could never be with anyone else. Even with Riley some things were harder to say out loud, but that never applied to Josh. She could have dated so many boys if she wanted to but none of them ever made her feel like she could share her entire world with them and that every piece would be perfectly safe in their hands. Josh made her feel safe and he made her laugh over dumb stuff that no one else in the whole world would get. She could spend her whole life in this little bubble with just the two of them and be happy. She'd never long for anything else.

Just as she was starting to forget Josh ever had a girlfriend and her guilt was dimming down they both were in for a surprise. Maya heard the coffee shop door open and they both subconsciously turned to look at it. It took a moment for Maya's brain to register that it was really Amanda walking towards them. She still wasn't sure if Amanda moved in slow motion or if it was just her brain messing with her. Josh was just as caught off guard as Maya was. His face showed it more.

"Hey babe." She walked up to Josh and kissed him. "I was just headed home and saw you through the window. Hey Maya, it's great to see you again." She said to Maya and then turned towards Josh again. "I thought you'd be in your dorm by now."

"Yeah, Maya and I just kept talking, and I lost track of time." Josh explained, sounding guiltier than he had the right to be.

"That's fine. I'll be in my dorm so you just call me when you get back." Amanda said still smiling. Does she ever stop smiling, Maya wondered.

"You can join us." Josh said.

"Yes." Maya confirmed. "Yes. Join us."

"Oh, are you sure? I don't want to impose but it would be nice to get to know one of Josh's' closest friends." Amanda said.

"And I'd like to get to know Josh's'…" She almost choked on the last word. "…girlfriend."

"Ok then." Josh concluded. "We'll all hang out together."

"This will be fun." Amanda said genuinely.

Maya had to disagree. They all sat down. Amanda ordered a cup of tea and Maya and Josh both ordered another cup of coffee. Maya's heart was beating so much she thought it would explode. Amanda was nice and sweet and Maya hated her. It was irrational and childish perhaps, but Maya spent so much time loving a boy who Amanda gets to touch and kiss and Maya hated her for it. She tried to hide it. She laughed at Amanda's jokes and pretended not to flinch every time she touched Josh's arm. Time past so slowly and Maya couldn't wait to leave and tell Riley about another heartbreaking Josh story.

The moment she left the coffee shop she headed to Riley's room. She snuck in through the window and sat on the bay window where Riley was already sitting with a pillow in her lap.

"So how was your night?" Maya asked.

"Bad." Riley answered without missing the beat. "Yours?"

"Bad." Maya answered. "I am such an idiot Riles." She exclaimed. "He has a girlfriend. An annoyingly sweet and nice girlfriend. They are clearly in love and I am an idiot who doesn't know when to stop."

"I know you're having a bad day and I want to talk about it but I just broke up with Lucas so I just need a minute." Riley interrupted.

"What? Why?" Maya was in shock.

"I don't want to talk about it. Can you give me a hug and then we'll talk about Josh." Riley said and Maya rushed to embrace her.

"Oh sweetie, I am so sorry." Maya said, not wanting to pry beyond Riley's comfort zone. In response Riley just sighed and started to cry in Maya's shoulder.

"My mascara is ruining your shirt." Riley said through tears.

"It's ok honey, it's your shirt." Maya responded.

"It looks better on you." Riley said.

They just sat there on Riley's bay window, hugging while Riley cried for a while. When she finally calmed down, she told Maya all about her awful dinner.

"It was awful. His parents are awful." Riley told her everything that happened and how it made her feel.

"Do you think I overreacted?" She wondered.

"No." Maya said without hesitation. "You should have walked out sooner."

"He did try to stand up for me and it's hard standing up to your parents. I disagree with my parents about a lot but I never say anything." Riley tried to rationalize it.

"Stop. Don't talk yourself out of it. You stood up for yourself. Just like you did with Charlie. You're a badass. Ranger Rick may be a good guy but tonight he sucked. You were right to walk out." Maya encouraged her.

"Ranger Rick?"

"Because he's from Texas." Maya explained. "I'm trying it out."

"They just made me feel so insecure. I hated it. I hate that he put me in that position so i just ended it. The crappy thing is I really liked him." Riley went on to explain.

"I know you did peaches. I wish that was enough. Maybe he will call and tell you how stupid he was and he will make sure you never have to see his parents again and you'll live happily ever after." Maya tried to cheer up her friend.

"I thought you didn't believe in happily ever after."

"I do when it comes to you because I don't know of anyone more deserving of one then you."

"You will get yours too."

"Do you think it's really over between you and Lucas? Like if actually calls and asks you to get back together, would you?" Maya asked.

"I don't know. I stood there and listen to everything his parents said and the hardest part was that they were right about some things. We do come from different worlds and I don't think I belong in his and I don't want to pull him away from his parents, no matter how bad they were to me, they love him. I don't want him to have to choose and that will definitely happen." Riley tried to explain.

"You belong in every world there is. You are the reason they build worlds. Are you crazy? I know you have a great relationship with your parents because your parents are the best, but not everyone is as lucky. Maybe he should get away from his parents. Sometimes that's for the best. Some love is toxic. Some parents are too." Maya said.

Riley thought about Maya's words for a second. Could she be right? "I don't know. Let's forget about that for a while. What happened with Josh tonight?" She asked.

Maya sighed with anger and fell back on the bay window. "I am starting to hate him. He is messing with my head. One minute I think he loves me the next he's holding hands with Amanda. My heart is about to burst whenever he smiles at me and he is playing house with Amanda. He was so sweet tonight he even held my hand and we laughed about stupid stuff like we always do and then his girlfriend showed up and metaphorically slapped me in the face."

"I am sorry peaches. That sucks." Riley comforted her.

"I thought I could do it – the whole friends thing and then I thought maybe if I just let him in and hang out with him he will love me some day. But every day ends the same, I get my hopes up, he goes home with Amanda and I get my heart broken again. I can't do it anymore. I think I have to take a step back. I can't be his friend when my whole body is on fire every time I think about him. I want his heart and body and mind. I want it all and I can't pretend any longer. It's too hard." Maya admitted.

"I want to comfort you and find the right words to say but I don't know anything. I thought love was supposed to be simple. You find someone you like, they like you back and you live happily ever after. No complications. But it's a little harder when the story is not just in your head." Riley said.

"Love was always complicated for me. It brings out a lot of insecurities in me. First with my dad, then with Josh. Sometimes I feel like there is something wrong with me, like I am so unlovable. Because no one ever loved me." Maya tried to explain.

"Peaches, I love you. I love you the most out of all the people in the world." Riley rushed to say. It broke her heart that her best friend could feel like this.

"I love you too Riles but you know what I mean. Romantic love. The stuff in the movies. I want that too. I've always been scared to say it out loud. Like if the universe hears me it would take it away. And Josh was the reason that for the first time I felt hope. And it's all gone now. I never even kissed anyone. Do you have any idea how many nights I stayed up imagining what my first kiss would be like? I had all this different scenarios of how it happens but all of them had one thing in common, my first kiss was always with Josh."

"I am so sorry I don't know how to fix this for you. But I never want you to feel unlovable. Your edges are not as sharp as you thing. There is some darkness in you but there is also so much light. You don't get to focus on just one part of who you are. You are so beautiful inside and out and if Josh is not the one, it's his loss. He's an idiot anyways. If he can't see you're the best thing that can happen to him, he doesn't deserve you." Riley said in comfort.

Before Maya could say something in return, Riley's phone rang. She turned to look who was calling her.

"It's Lucas." She said breathless.

"Do you want to answer it?"

"I don't know." The phone rang again. "No, I don't think so. I need to think about everything before I let him sweet talk me into anything."

Riley left the phone next to her. They both watched it in silence until it stopped ringing.

"Do you think he'll call again?" Riley asked.

"This is like the time he called to ask you out for the first time. Of course he'll call again." Maya confirmed.

"Then I should turn it off." Riley said. She turned her phone off and threw it on her bed, far out of her reach.

"We do not have the best coping mechanisms." Riley stated.

"I had horrible parental influences, what is your excuse?" Maya asked.

"I had you." Riley joked.

Maya laughed. "You may be a mess but you are my mess." Both girls laughed.

Maya stayed over for the night. They were both exhausted after the emotionally draining evening they had. Before they fell asleep they looked at each other and they both knew that no matter what happens they can always count on their best friend.

 **A/N: Hey guys, it's been a while, but luckily shorter than the previous break. Thank you for all your wonderful comments after the last chapter. I love how invested and interested you are and the little theories and hopes you have. Thank you so much to everyone who takes time to read this story and comment on it. I love you all so much for it. :)**

 **P.S. I changed my user name, I hope that's not confusing :)**


	9. The first time

A week has passed since Riley and Lucas broke up. Lucas has been calling Riley every day since then but Riley never answered. Sometimes she wanted to. She imagined the perfect words she wanted to hear and she hoped Lucas would say them. But she still felt hurt and she wasn't ready to talk to him yet. Maya was avoiding Josh as well. He called her once, the day after they hanged out. She didn't answer. Instead it went to voice mail. Josh said he had something to tell her and that he hopped she could call him back. But Maya didn't. She texted him once to tell him she'll be busy painting for a while. Josh said he understood and asked her to call him when she gets a chance. She needed space to try and get over him. She refused to be an addict, like her father, even at the cost of losing Josh forever. She needed to take care of herself first. Sometimes it was too hard not to call back, for both Riley and Maya, so they would give each other their phones to avoid the temptation.

Lucas finally decided to fight for Riley with everything he has. After ten days of calling and getting only Riley's voice mail he got up and went to her house to try to talk to her in person. He didn't want to give up on them. He hated his parents for how they treated her and he knew Riley had every right to be upset with him. He pushed her into something she wasn't comfortable with. He was wrong and he knew it. When he reached Riley's apartment and put his hand out to ring her bell, he froze. He started to sweat and his heart started to beat even faster. What is he going to say? How is he going to make this better? How do you say 'I'm sorry my parents suck, please date me anyway'? He sat on the stairs in front of her apartment building, taking some more time to think about everything. At around the same time Josh was approaching the Matthews residence. Maybe even hopping deep down that Maya will be there too. He saw a boy who looked kind of familiar sitting on the stairs in front of the door.

"Hey. Lucas right?" Josh asked the boy sitting on the stairs.

"Yes. Oh, you're Riley's uncle." Lucas smiled.

"It's Josh." The boys shook hands and Josh sat down next to Lucas.

"So what are you doing here?" Josh finally asked.

"I screwed up and Riley won't answer my calls so I came here to talk to her in person so she can't ignore me but I chickened out and now I am just sitting here waiting to gather up some courage." Lucas explained. "Are you here to see Maya?"

"Maya? What? No." The mention of Maya's name made his heart skip a bit. Why does it keep doing that? "I am always here. I come here all the time. If Maya happens to be here and I see her than that's great but I am not here to see her specifically." Josh mumbled. "Funny enough I also have to talk to Riley. I tried calling her but her phone has been turned off for the past two days."

"Yeah, that might be my fault. Sorry about that." Lucas said.

"That's fine. Are you gonna go in there any time soon?" Josh asked.

"Eventually, I hope." Lucas said with an anxious smile.

"What do you need to talk to Riley about?" Lucas asked.

"It's personal." Josh quickly answered.

"Is it about Maya?" Lucas tried again.

"Where is this Maya thing coming from?" Josh quickly asked.

"Come on dude, you're clearly into each other. I saw it the day I met you." Lucas said.

Josh's heart fluttered at the thought. "What?"

"Yeah. You are both terrible at pretending." Lucas insisted.

"She never said anything." Josh responded.

"She doesn't have to say it. You can see it from space." Lucas kept saying.

"Crap." Josh simply said.

"Look I know you have a girlfriend but it's not that bad." Lucas tried to comfort him.

"I don't have a girlfriend." Josh responded.

"What?" Lucas was shocked.

"We broke up." Josh explained. "About a week ago, actually."

"Because of Maya?" Lucas asked.

"Because I didn't love her." Josh answered. "So maybe a little bit because of Maya."

"Do you love her?" Lucas asked.

Josh swallowed a big lump before answering. "I love spending time with her. She makes me laugh and she makes me feel all warm and safe, you know." He was scared to say.

"So why did you say crap when I said she is in love with you? Isn't that a good thing?" Lucas wondered.

"It's complicated." Josh said.

"Then uncomplicated it. She likes you, you like her. Stop messing around." Lucas advised.

"If you are such an expert on love, how come you are sitting here on the steps with me and not with Riley?" Josh shot back.

"I might be an idiot but I am not blind. I see the way she lights up when she sees you. And if you think it's not mutual, you're mistaking." Lucas said.

"You saw us together like once, for a minute." Josh protested.

"And that one minute was enough to know." Lucas persisted.

Josh didn't say anything. He looked straight ahead, thinking.

"Why are you really here Josh?" Lucas asked.

Josh hesitated for a moment. "Because I need to talk to Riley."

"About what?" Lucas kept trying to get him to say it.

"What do you want me to say? That I love Maya? That I've always loved Maya? Fine, I love her. That will never change. But I've known her too long. We practically grew up together. I've know her since I was 7. That's most of my life. We had sleepovers in the same bed. I took her and Riley trick or treating two years in a row. It's too weird. She's younger than me and loving her felt weird. I felt like a creep trying to pursuit my little cousin's best friend. I tried to get over her. Amanda is really nice. And she liked me. I thought if I can't get over Maya with her then I can't get over her with anyone. For a while I fooled myself into thinking it could work. I was with Amanda and that was like a wall and I thought finally I can be just friends with Maya because I had a girlfriend but that was dumb. And I couldn't stay away because it feels like I can't breathe when she's not there. I mean, we haven't spoken in a week and I've been losing my mind missing her. And last week we sat next to each other talking about Taylor Swift and it was the happiest I have ever been and then Amanda showed up and it felt like a cold shower and I felt like I was dying. And Maya, you should have seen Maya. She looked like I broke her. Her face… I hoped I wasn't right. I really hoped she didn't like me. That would have been so much easier. I am not good for her. But I need her in my life. She is the only thing that brings me joy. And the second I saw her face, the way she looked at me and Amanda, I knew I was fooling myself. I figured she liked me but I still hoped I was wrong. But if even you can see it… I wasn't doing what's best for her I was just staying away out of fear. Because I suck at relationships. Things never work out for me and I can't lose Maya so I couldn't risk it. I know her, she was in pain and I felt like the biggest jerk. She looked the way I felt. I tried calling her to tell her I was an idiot and I broke up with Amanda but she needed space. And I get it. And I don't know how to be around her and not hurt her. I don't know if she needs a friend or something more or nothing from me so I need to talk to Riley so she can tell me how to fix this." Josh let everything pour out in one breath. It felt like a huge weight has been lifted off of his shoulder. Weight he had been caring for a long time, longer then even he realized.

"You could try talking to her." Lucas stated the obvious.

"She lied to me. She said she was going to paint because she knew I know how isolated she gets when she's in the zone. I really hurt her. She never lied to me before." Josh said.

"How do you know she lied?" Lucas wondered.

"Because I know her. Last week was the first week of the month and she never paints on the first week of the month. She spends it looking for inspiration. It's very important to her and if she misses it, she doesn't paint at all for the rest of the month." Josh explained.

"She is a bit weird." Lucas said honestly.

"I think she's really adorable." Josh said. "Also have you seen her covered in paint? It's so hot."

"Dude, you got it bad." Lucas said.

"Shut up."

"No, I get it. I liked Riley since the moment I saw her. I knew I loved her since the third tequila shot we drank the night we met. That's why I am here trying to make it better. Because I know I can't spend the rest of my life without Riley Matthews." Lucas said. Josh smiled and put his hand on Lucas's shoulder in support. He got up.

"I should go. You should go upstairs and stop being an idiot. Go apologize to Riley and tell her she comes first, before all the crap, before anyone else. She comes first. And you better mean it. Otherwise i will kill you." Josh said.

"You know Maya's probably upstairs, right?" Lucas asked.

Josh nodded. "That's exactly why I shouldn't be. She asked for space."

"Only because she thinks you don't love her. But you do. You should tell her." Lucas advised.

Josh sat down again. "What if that's not what she wants anymore? What if I can't deliver anything past the declaration of love?" Josh wondered.

"You have some failed relationship, so what? Who doesn't? You said she made you feel all warm and safe, has anyone else but Maya ever made you feel like that?" Lucas asked.

"No." Josh said honestly.

"Maybe that's why it never worked out with anyone else. It wasn't meant to." Lucas said wisely.

"Are you just too scared to go upstairs by yourself?" Josh asked.

"Maybe so, but that doesn't change the fact that I am right." Lucas concluded.

XXXX

"What are they doing down there? It's been like 20 minutes." Maya was getting more frustrated by the minute. The girls saw Lucas and Josh talking trough their window.

"They don't even know each other. They are just doing this to mess with us some more." Riley responded.

"Josh is now standing. What could they possible be talking about? They have nothing in common." Maya said.

"He sat down again. Are they gonna stay there all day?" Riley wondered.

"If they do, I am moving in here. I am not leaving while Josh is out there." Maya said.

"What are you gonna do if he comes in?" Riley asked.

"Climb out the window, of course." Maya said.

"Of course." Riley confirmed.

They looked out the window again. They saw Josh leave and Lucas stand up and head to the door.

"Well, I guess I don't have to climb out the window." Maya said.

Riley hugged her tight. "I am going to kill my uncle."

"Don't bother. What am I going to do with you in jail?" They heard Lucas knocking on the door.

"Go get your guy back." Maya said and smiled.

"I don't have to go. I don't even know what to tell him. We can stay here forever." Riley said.

"No we can't. No matter what we say, the world is a bit bigger than just the two of us and that's not always a bad thing. So go, let him beg for your forgiveness and be happy. I'm gonna go home, just in case it goes really well and you'll call me after with all the details." Maya said and forced a smile.

Riley hesitated for a while then she nodded. She went to her front door, meanwhile Maya climbed out the window and headed home. Riley opened the door with sweaty palms and a fast beating heart. Lucas stood on the other side of the door as perfect as ever. He smiled and it melted Riley's heart.

"Hey." Lucas said.

"Hi." Riley responded.

"So I don't know if you know this, but apparently your phone is turned off." He said.

"Oh really. Huh, that's weird." She played along.

"Yeah it is. And then the pigeon I sent with a message got lost too."

"I didn't know we still had the message carrying pigeons. Is that a rich person thing?"

"Well I'm glad the pigeon wasn't here to hear that because that would've broken his heart."

"Something tells me you're not here to talk about pigeons." Riley said. They both moved further into the living room and Riley closed the door.

"I messed up." Lucas jumped right in there. "I messed up and I am so sorry. You were right to walk away. I should have done it sooner. I should have been the one who told my parents off and grabbed your hand and walked into the sunset with you. And I'm sorry I didn't. I'm sorry they were rude and wrong and I'm sorry I pushed you in the first place."

"Am I the first girl they disapproved of?" Riley wondered.

"Yes, but you are also the second one they ever met. And the first one was in primary school." Lucas explained.

"Wait a minute. You introduced me to your parents after three dates and you expect me to believe you've never introduced them to anyone before?" Riley didn't believe it.

"No one else mattered." Lucas said and melted her heart. Riley shook it off and refused to get off track.

"Your words are very sweet and it would be so easy for me to fall back into a relationship with you because I'm falling for you. Hard. But your mother was right about somethings. And we can pretend not to see them now but eventually they will come up and it will be so much harder when I love you so much more and I am tired of heartbreak." Riley said honestly.

„Then let's talk about it. Let's bring up everything you think will break us up and I will prove to you that none of it matters." Lucas was relentless.

"Fine." Riley accepted. "I'll make a list."

"I'm surprised you haven't done it already." Lucas said.

"I did. I just didn't want you to know it." Riley admitted.

"You can bring it out."

"I memorized it." She said.

Lucas smiled lovingly. "Of course you did."

"Okay. Let's start." Riley said strictly as soon as they sat down on the couch. "Number one. What if your parents cut you off financially?"

"That changes nothing since they don't pay for anything. I work two jobs and I pay for everything myself."

"But what if they gave you an ultimatum? Like break up with her or you're not allowed to come to Christmas dinners anymore. What if there's a family event that you have to attend and can't bring me? What if they say they will never speak to you as long as you are with me?"

"I love you Riles. I think I could love you for the rest of my life. Whether we're together or not. So nothing else matters. And I can't let you go because I would rather love you with you in my life. I am standing here, begging you to forgive me because you come first. Before money, before my parents, before any other crap. All I'm asking for is a chance to prove to you with action what I'm saying to you now with words. So please come here so I can kiss you." Lucas declared.

"What about tomorrow? Or next month? Or in a year? Will you feel the same then or will you subconsciously hate me for ruining your relationship with you parents?" Riley was still scared. Scared to trust someone again, scared to let go, scared to love. Lucas looked at her with a soft smile and moved closer to her. He leaned his forehead onto hers and closed his eyes while holding her hands.

"Riley Matthews" he whispered. "I love you. I love you. I love you. And I am going to keep saying it, until you hear it and feel it and you know it and then I'll still keep saying it because it will still be true. You might be filled with doubt right now but I can be sure enough for the both of us for right now. And I am absolutely sure that I could never resent you. It isn't possible. It could never be possible."

Riley closed her eyes too as she listened to his words. She bit her bottom lip and a tear rolled down her cheek. She believed his words. She knew he meant it. Maybe she is overthinking everything. She just wanted to shut her mind and kiss him. So she did. He kissed her back instantly. They tangled each other in each other's limbs, hungry to compensate for the time they lost. Riley broke the kiss to take off her shirt. That caught Lucas by surprise.

"Take off your shirt." Riley commanded. Lucas grinned wide and obeyed. Riley laid on her back with Lucas on top of her. They kissed and took the rest of their clothes off. Riley just hopped her parents won't be coming home soon.

XXXX

Maya took the long way home. It was one of those days. It was cold outside and she wished she had a warmer jacket with her. She put her headphones on and played her music. She did not want to be alone with her thoughts. She walked slowly down all of her favorite back streets that weren't crawling with tourist. She finally reached the inside of her apartment building. She climber up the stairs to the fourth floor instead of taking the elevator. She reached the last step and stopped. She saw the last thing she expected to see. Josh was sitting in front of her door.

 **A/N:** I got a lot of nice messages and a lot of people urging me to update and continue this story and I just want to take a minute to thank each and every one of you. Including the ones who read it without commenting. I want you to know how much it means to know that someone carred enough about a piece of writing you decided to share with the world to respond to the writer. Writing is very vulnerable and personal, even when you write about character you didn't create yourself. And at the times when I doubted myself or struggled to figure what's next for these protagonists, I could always turn to your kind words. I am sorry I don't update more offen, I wish I had more time but thank you for stuicking it out with me and I hope you'll continue to love it and read it until the very end. We get to see a lot of Josh's perspective in this one and I leave you with a bit of a cliffhanger. Hope you enjoyed it


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